FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Gibraltar

Dennis Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when (a) he, (b) his Ministers and (c) his officials next plan to meet the Chief Minister of Gibraltar.

Peter Hain: Whenever this is mutually convenient.
	Ministers are always ready to meet the Chief Minister. I had hoped that he would meet me while he was in London last month. The Secretary of State hopes to visit Gibraltar early in 2002. The Governor of Gibraltar meets the Chief Minister on a regular basis.

Gibraltar

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what alternatives to the Brussels Process are under consideration to ensure participation in talks on the future status of Gibraltar by the Government of Gibraltar.

Peter Hain: I refer my hon. Friend to my statement in Westminster Hall on 7 November 2001, Official Report, columns 88–92WH. The Government believe that talks under the Brussels Process represent the best way to ensure a more secure, stable and prosperous future for the people of Gibraltar.

Gibraltar

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received from the US Government on the future status of Gibraltar.

Peter Hain: None.

Gibraltar

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on his proposals to consult the people of Gibraltar consequent on the completion of negotiations between Spain and the United Kingdom in relation to the terms whereby the consultative process shall be concluded by a referendum.

Peter Hain: holding answer 4 December 2001
	As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and the Spanish Foreign Minister announced following their meeting held in Barcelona on 20 November, the British and Spanish Governments aim to reach by the summer of next year an agreement covering all outstanding issues between them over Gibraltar, including those of co-operation and sovereignty. A copy of the press communiqué has been placed in the Libraries of the House.
	Should a comprehensive agreement affecting sovereignty emerge from these Brussels Process discussions, HMG are committed to asserting the wishes of the people of Gibraltar, as stated in the 1969 Order in Council establishing the Gibraltar Constitution. Since the result of such a referendum could trigger the introduction of a primary legislation in the UK, HMG will expect to oversee the organisation and timing of any such referendum, in consultation with the Government of Gibraltar.

Georgia

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received from the Government of Georgia concerning Russian aerial bombardment of Georgian territory in November.

Peter Hain: On 28 November the Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister briefed the British and other EU ambassadors about reported aerial bombardment in Georgia on 27 and 28 November. The Georgian embassy in London has also contacted the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on this matter.

Georgia

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what inquiries his Department has made into allegations by the Government of Georgia that Russian aircraft bombarded the Pankisi Gorge.

Peter Hain: We raised the matter with the Russian Government in Moscow on 4 and 7 December, and with the Georgian Government on 6 December. The Russian and Georgian Presidents have agreed to establish a joint commission to investigate the incident.

Chechnya

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his policy is on Russian military action against Chechens located on the territory of other sovereign states of the former Soviet Union.

Peter Hain: We recognise that groups of Chechen fighters located in other states in the former Soviet Union pose a threat to regional security. But Russia must respect the territorial integrity of other sovereign states and not take unilateral military action. We have told the Russians that to do so would be unacceptable and would not solve Russia's security problems or promote regional stability.

Afghanistan

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his Department's policy is on the post-conflict construction of strategic oil pipelines across Afghanistan.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government support multiple pipelines to create more secure, diverse energy markets, but decisions on individual pipelines are a matter for commercial judgment.

Afghanistan

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the policy of creating a stable, inclusive Government in Afghanistan; and what the British contribution to this effort will be.

Ben Bradshaw: We have played an important role in encouraging the interested parties to agree at the Bonn Conference on 5 December, to a power-sharing government. We believe that this is the first step towards a peaceful and stable Afghanistan. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has had a number of conversations with key figures to this end, the British Office in Kabul has engaged directly with United Front leaders, and a senior diplomat, Robert Cooper, attended the Bonn Conference. The Royal Air Force facilitated the travel of some of the delegates from Kabul.

Council of Ministers

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how long in advance he receives agendas for meetings of the EU Council of Ministers.

Peter Hain: In accordance with the Council's rules of procedure, provisional agendas are drawn up by the presidency and sent to other members of the Council and the Commission at least 14 days before the beginning of each meeting of the Council of Ministers.

Public Service Agreements

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on progress in 2001 towards meeting the Public Service Agreement target of contributing to the Government's target to reduce Civil Service sickness absence rates.

Ben Bradshaw: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is committed to reducing sickness absence by 20 per cent. (to an average of 6.5 days) by 2001. This figure was set against the 1998 baseline figure of an average of eight days. We now have a new reporting system in place, which allows us to monitor sickness absence in detail, and effectively manage individual cases. Figures for 2001 have not yet been collated, but early indications are that we are on course to meet the 2001 target.

Departmental Staff (Absence)

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many days were lost due to sickness absence in the Department in each of the last four years.

Ben Bradshaw: The following is the information:
	
		Average number of days sickness absence per staff year
		
			 Year  Days 
		
		
			 1997 (1)8.9 
			 1998 (1)8.0 
			 1999 (2)n/a 
			 2000 6.1 
		
	
	(1) Figures for 1997 to 1998 have been uplifted to account for different recording practices in different parts of the Department and its overseas Posts. These figures are based on the average number of days, including weekends, whereas later figures are based on the average number of working days only.
	(2) Figures for 1999 could be provided only at disproportionate cost: the method of recording changed part way through 1999.
	We now have a new reporting system in place, which allows us to monitor sickness in detail and effectively manage individual cases. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is committed to reducing sickness absence by 20 per cent. (to an average of 6.5 days) by 2001 and by 30 per cent. (5.6 days) by 2003. These figures were set against the 1998 baseline figure of eight days. Early indications are that we are on course to meet these targets.

WALES

EU Structural Funds

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what consultations he has had with the First Secretary about the role of EU structural funding in the National Assembly's economic development plan.

Paul Murphy: I meet the First Secretary regularly to discuss economic development in Wales, among other issues.

Training

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with other Government Departments and the First Secretary of the National Assembly on measures to improve access to training in Wales.

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with other Government Departments and the First Secretary of the National Assembly for Wales about measures to improve access to training in Wales.

Don Touhig: My right hon. Friend and I have regular meetings with ministerial and Assembly colleagues to discuss a range of issues.
	My right hon. Friend the Chancellor announced new measures in the Budget to improve access to training and enable employees to attain basic and level 2 skills.
	In addition, the National Assembly is committed to supporting and developing access to learning in Wales.

Working Families Tax Credit

Win Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many households in Wales have benefited from the working families tax credit; and if he will make a statement.

Don Touhig: The Inland Revenue estimates that 76,000 families were receiving this benefit at 31 May 2001.

Innovation and Enterprise

Dai Havard: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with other Government Ministers and the First Secretary of the National Assembly about steps to promote innovation and enterprise in Wales.

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with other Ministers and the First Secretary of the National Assembly about steps to promote innovation and enterprise in Wales.

Paul Murphy: I have regular meetings with ministerial colleagues in Government and with the First Secretary of the National Assembly for Wales, to discuss a range of issues, including innovation and enterprise.
	The Chancellor's recent pre-Budget report announced a number of measures which build on existing programmes to promote innovation and enterprise in Wales and across the UK. These include the extension of research and development tax credits to all UK companies and support for small businesses, which will benefit 140,000 small and medium enterprises in Wales.

Manufacturing

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussion he has had with the First Secretary on prospects for manufacturing growth through inward investment in Wales.

Paul Murphy: I meet the First Secretary regularly to discuss a range of issues including manufacturing and inward investment in Wales.

Barnett Formula

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with the First Secretary about the method of calculating the Barnett formula.

Paul Murphy: None.

Television Broadcasting

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the First Secretary of the National Assembly for Wales regarding the availability of free-to-air television programming throughout the whole of Wales.

Don Touhig: My right hon. Friend and I have discussed the availability of free-to-air television with Assembly Ministers.
	I am aware that four channels are receivable by analogue terrestrial means from Welsh transmitters (BBC One Wales; BBC Two Wales; HTV Wales; S4C). About 98 per cent. of the population can receive these services. Alternatively, many households near the English border can receive services from England, including Channel 4 and Channel 5 (as well as English regional variants of the other channels). About 40 per cent. of the population live in areas where signals from England are being received. Two aerials are generally required in order to receive both Welsh and English signals clearly.

Statutory Instruments

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many statutory instruments dealing with Welsh matters have been passed by Committees of the House since devolution became effective; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Murphy: I refer the hon. Member to the responses I gave him at the Westminster Hall adjournment debate on 5 December 2001.

Welsh Language

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the Welsh Language Board regarding the use of the Welsh language by Westminster Government Departments and UK-level public bodies when providing services to people in Wales.

Don Touhig: None. This is a matter for the Welsh Language Board which is a National Assembly for Wales Sponsored Public Body.

Welsh Language

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what representations he has made to the National Assembly for Wales regarding its review of the future of the Welsh language.

Don Touhig: This is a review by the Culture Committee of the Assembly. It is a matter for that Committee to conduct its investigation as appropriate, and so far there has been no approach to this office.

Waiting Lists

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with the Health Secretary of the National Assembly regarding the length of waiting lists in Welsh hospitals.

Don Touhig: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I meet regularly with the National Assembly First Secretary and Health Minister to discuss a range of issues including the length of waiting lists.

Child Poverty

Martin Caton: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with other Government Departments about progress made in tackling child poverty in Wales.

Don Touhig: My right hon. Friend and I have regular meetings with ministerial colleagues to discuss a range of issues including matters that affect children in Wales.
	The Government are tackling the causes of poverty, not just the symptoms to ensure all children are given the best start in life. They have pledged to halve child poverty by 2010 and end it by 2020.
	The National Assembly is seeking to complement UK measures with a range of polices and programmes designed to meet the specific circumstances and priorities of Wales.

Objective 1 Funding

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with the First Secretary of the National Assembly for Wales on the failure of Blaenau Gwent CBC to obtain objective 1 funding for the conversion of the Metropole theatre, Abertillery.

Don Touhig: The administration of structural fund programmes in Wales and individual project approvals under those programmes are matters for the National Assembly for Wales and its executive agency, the Welsh European Funding Office.

Port Talbot Steelworks

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the First Secretary about workers' safety at Port Talbot steelworks.

Paul Murphy: I regularly meet the First Secretary to discuss a wide range of issues, including the steel industry in Wales.
	A single, combined investigation led by the Health and Safety Executive and also involving the police and Corus is currently under way. This combined approach will greatly reduce the pressure on those giving evidence, as their accounts will be taken by just one investigator.
	Corus has stated that the remainder of the Port Talbot plant is operating normally.

Pensioner Poverty

Betty Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with other Government Departments about progress made by the Government in reducing pensioner poverty in Wales.

Paul Murphy: I regularly meet ministerial colleagues to discuss a range of issues including matters that affect pensioners in Wales.
	The UK Government are committed to developing policies which enable pensioners to share in the country's rising prosperity and which tackle pensioner poverty. New measures announced by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor will benefit thousands of pensioners in Wales.
	The National Assembly is seeking to complement UK measures with a range of polices and programmes to tackle pensioner poverty in Wales.

Pensioner Poverty

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions has he had with other Government departments about progress made by the Government in reducing pensioner poverty in Wales.

Jackie Lawrence: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with other Government Departments about progress made by the Government in reducing pensioner poverty in Wales.

Paul Murphy: I regularly meet ministerial colleagues to discuss a range of issues including matters that affect pensioners in Wales.
	The UK Government are committed to developing policies which enable pensioners to share in the country's rising prosperity and which tackle pensioner poverty. New measures announced by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer will benefit thousands of pensioners in Wales.
	The National Assembly is seeking to complement UK measures with a range of polices and programmes to tackle pensioner poverty in Wales.

Inward Investment

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to meet small business leaders to discuss inward investment in Wales; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Murphy: I have regular meetings with business leaders in Wales to discuss a range of issues affecting their businesses.
	Inward investment makes a significant contribution to the Welsh economy by bringing in new products, new skills and new ideas. Since December 2000, Wales has attracted capital investment of £633 million, promising 5,346 new jobs and the safeguarding of 4,335 existing jobs.

Antisocial Behaviour Orders

Alan Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many antisocial behaviour orders have been made in Wales.

Don Touhig: Four. The Minister of State with responsibility for crime reduction, policing and community safety, my right hon. Friend the Member for Southampton, Itchen (Mr. Denham), recently participated in a Wales-wide seminar to promote ASBOs. I anticipate that this well attended event will result in greater exchange of best practice and lead to an increase in the number of ASBOs being applied for in Wales.

PRIME MINISTER

Totnes

Anthony Steen: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make an official visit to Totnes.

Tony Blair: I have no plans at present to do so.

Senior Civil Service Appointments

Tam Dalyell: To ask the Prime Minister what new conditions an applicant will be required to agree to before appointment as (a) head of the Civil Service and (b) Cabinet Secretary.

Tony Blair: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer that I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Pendle (Mr. Prentice) on 26 November 2001, Official Report, column 626W.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the number of (a) civilians and (b) members of military organisations killed in Afghanistan in the last two months;

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many bombing raids in Afghanistan did not hit their intended targets; and how many civilians he estimates have been (a) killed and (b) wounded by these raids.

Geoff Hoon: The coalition has from the outset of the campaign gone to very great lengths to minimise the risks to civilians from air strikes, which have been conducted against exclusively military targets. Although extensive battle damage assessment is routinely conducted after each strike, we cannot know for sure how many bombing raids may not have hit their intended targets, nor how many civilian casualties may have been caused as a result. While we investigate all such claims carefully, most cannot be verified.

War Pensions

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many armed forces personnel applications for a war pension from the War Pension Agency are outstanding; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: As at 30 November 2001, there were 4,549 applications for a war pension outstanding from ex-services personnel.

Prisoners of War (Far East)

Peter Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reason the definition of British as it applies to civilian former prisoners of the Japanese differs from that applied to armed forces personnel.

Lewis Moonie: holding answer 11 December 2001
	Under the former Far East prisoners ex-gratia payment scheme, the eligibility criteria for former service personnel are based upon the unit in which an individual was serving. Hence the main eligibility criterion is to have been taken as a prisoner of war while serving with our armed forces. In addition, certain other former military personnel who were taken as prisoners of war while serving in the colonial forces, the old Indian Army, or the Burmese armed forces and who received compensation in the 1950s under UK auspices under Article 16 of the Peace Treaty with Japan are also eligible for the scheme.

Prisoners of War (Far East)

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the additional cost of extending his scheme of ex gratia payments to all surviving British passport holders and their spouses who were interned by the Japanese;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the numbers of surviving civilian internees of the Japanese and their spouses who do not qualify for payments under the rules of his scheme.

Lewis Moonie: No estimate has been made of the number of surviving civilians who were interned by the Japanese during the Second World War or of the number of them who were British passport holders at that time. We believe that the available data are too poor to be able to make such estimates.

HOUSE OF COMMONS

Members' Pensions

Chris Grayling: To ask the President of the Council what provisions for hon. Members' pensions were in place in 1974; and what provisions there were in relation to former members of the armed forces in the House.

Robin Cook: Pension provision for hon. Members is made from the Parliamentary Contribution Pension Fund, established by the Ministerial Salaries and Members' Pension Act 1965. The provisions in place for hon. Members' pensions in 1974 were made under the Parliamentary and other Pensions Act 1972. This provided for pensions based on one-sixtieth of the final year's salary for each year of reckonable service on completion of a minimum of four years reckonable service when they retired on or after age 65. The Act also provided for a death in service lump sum, typically of one year's pay. Members were required to pay contributions of 5 per cent. of pay.
	No special provisions are made for former members of the armed forces in the House.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Fuel Poverty Strategy

Richard Allan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment her Department has made of the impact of the Draft Wireless Telegraphy (Control of Material Substances Forming Part of the Telecommunications System) Regulation 2001 on the Government's fuel poverty strategy.

Douglas Alexander: Representations were received from manufacturers of energy saving devices operated by power line technology as part of the Regulatory Impact Assessment consultations in the summer of 2000.

Powerline Technnology Industry

Richard Allan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment her Department has made of the impact of the draft Wireless Telegraphy (Control of Material Substances forming part of the Telecommunications System) Regulation 2001 on the viability of the UK powerline technology industry.

Douglas Alexander: The Department undertook widespread consultations on this matter in the summer of 2000. All representations have been taken into account in developing the Government's policy on this issue.

Micro-CHP Boiler Systems

Richard Allan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she has prepared a regulatory impact assessment on the impact of the draft Wireless Telegraphy (Control of Material Substances forming part of the Telecommunications System) Regulation 2001 on the introduction of micro-CHP boiler systems to the UK market.

Douglas Alexander: No representations about such boiler systems were received during consultations for the regulatory impact assessment carried out in summer 2000.

Radio Interference

Richard Allan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many complaints her Department has received about radio interference from products compliant with standard EN50065–1.

Douglas Alexander: There are none recorded.

Unsolicited E-mail

Richard Allan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what research she has undertaken into systems that allow people to opt out from receiving unsolicited commercial e-mail; and what evaluation she has made of their effectiveness.

Douglas Alexander: In response to proposed or adopted European legislation, my Department has consulted publicly on the effective regulation of unsolicited commercial e-mail on a number of occasions over the last few years. This consultation has covered existing and potential self-regulatory, co-regulatory and statutory approaches towards schemes for both opting in and opting out, but has not produced a consistent consensus in favour of one solution over another.

Employment Tribunals (Buckingham)

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many employment tribunal cases there were in the Buckingham constituency in each year since 1997; and what was the total level of compensation paid.

Alan Johnson: It is not possible to tell from the database of the Employment Tribunals Service how many employment tribunal cases there were in the Buckingham constituency in each year since 1997, nor the respective total level of compensation paid.

Fireworks

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the effectiveness of the voluntary code agreement regarding the sale of fireworks.

Melanie Johnson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to my hon. Friends the Members for Stourbridge (Ms Shipley) and for Jarrow (Mr. Hepburn) on 5 December 2001, Official Report, columns 305–06W.

Manufacturing Industries

Michael Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what level of Government financial assistance is paid to manufacturing industries in (a) Worcestershire and (b) Herefordshire.

Alan Johnson: Businesses in Worcestershire and Herefordshire can be eligible for assistance under the smart scheme as follows:
	All SMEs (fewer than 250 employees)
	Exceptional Projects—up to 30 per cent. of eligible project costs to a maximum of £450,000.
	Development Projects—30 per cent. of eligible project costs to a maximum of £150,000.
	Technology Reviews—up to a maximum of £2,500.
	Technology Studies—up to a maximum of £5,000. Small Enterprises (fewer than 50 employees)
	Feasibility Studies—75 per cent. of eligible project costs to a maximum of £45,000. Small Enterprises (fewer than 10 employees)
	Micro Projects—50 per cent. of eligible project costs up to a maximum of £10,000.
	SME businesses in certain local authority wards in Herefordshire and Worcestershire may be eligible under the enterprise grant scheme for grants of up to £75,000 or 15 per cent. of eligible project costs for projects involving fixed capital expenditure of up to £500,000. Herefordshire
	Backbury; Bateman; Berrington; Bircher; Border; Bringsty; Broad Oak; Bromyard; Burghill; Burmarsh; Butterley; Castle; Cradley; Creden Hill; Dinmore Hill; Doward; Eardisley; Fownhope; Frome; Frome Vale; Garron; Golden Cross; Golden Valley; Gorsley; Hagley; Hampton Court; Harewood End; Hatfield; Hegdon; Hergest; Hollington; Hope End; Kingsland; Kingsthorne; Kington Town; Leadon Vale; Ledbury; Ledbury Ward (DET NO1); Leintwardine; Leominster North; Leominster East; Leominster South; Lyonshall with Titley; Mansel; Marcle Ridge; Merbach; Mortimer; Olchon; Old Gore; Pembridge; Penyard; Pontrilas; Pyons with Birley; Ross-on-Wye East; Ross-on-Wye West; Stoney Street; Thinghill; Tram Inn; Upton; Walford; Weobley; Whitfield; Wilton; Wye. Worcestershire
	Bayton and Mamble; Cofton Hackett; Kyre Vale; Lindridge; Martley; Temeside; Tenbury Town; Uffdown; Vale of the Teme.
	In addition, businesses in the wards of Cofton Hackett and Uffdown in Worcestershire may be eligible under the regional selective assistance scheme for grants of up to 20 per cent. of eligible project costs for projects involving eligible costs of more than £500,000. The minimum level of grant is £75,000. SMEs may be eligible for a supplement to the 20 per cent. aid ceiling.
	Since 1 April 2000 to date grant has been paid to businesses in Herefordshire and Worcestershire as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 Smart 657,000 
			 Enterprise grant 32,000 
			 RSA 232,000

Food Supplements Directive

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of the implications for trade with (a) the United States of America and (b) other non-European Union countries of the forthcoming EU food supplements directive.

Nigel Griffiths: Officials have looked into the trade implications of the forthcoming EU food supplements directive. In negotiations the Government argued for a safety based approach to regulation of these products that ensured any adverse impact on trade was kept to a minimum. We have received no adverse comments from the US or other non-EU countries about the trade implications of the directive.

Mobile Phones (VAT)

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the rates of VAT are in each EU member state on mobile phone (a) handsets and (b) services.

Douglas Alexander: Information on the topic is published by the European Commission in a document entitled "VAT Rates Applied in the Member States of the European Community" (DOC/2905/2001), a copy of which is available in the Libraries of the House.

Ethnic Minority Business Forum

David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she has responded to the Ethnic Minority Business Forum's report to her of 18 September.

Nigel Griffiths: I have today put a copy of my response to the Ethnic Minority Business Forum's report in the Library of the House.
	The Government welcome the report and look forward to working with the Ethnic Minority Business Forum to ensure that our policies and business support address the needs of ethnic minority businesses.

Sellafield

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many person days per annum safeguards inspectors from (a) Euratom and (b) the International Atomic Energy Agency have spent at Sellafield since December 1993; if she will list the facilities inspected; and if she will list the reports arising from the application of safeguards at Sellafield over this time

Brian Wilson: The safeguards provisions of the Euratom Treaty apply to all civil material in the UK and the Euratom Safeguards Office therefore inspects all parts of the BNFL Sellafield facility where such material is located. Since 1994 these inspections have involved between 1,400 and 1,750 person days of inspection each year. Reports on Euratom Safeguards Office activities are published periodically by the European Commission, most recently in July of this year (report reference COM(2001)436 final, accessible at the website of the European Parliament—Department of Trade and Industry Explanatory Memorandum 11669–01 refers).
	In addition to ongoing Euratom Safeguards Office inspections, civil material at UK nuclear facilities is subject to the terms of the tripartite safeguards agreement between the UK, Euratom and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), under which the IAEA designates certain civil UK nuclear facilities, or parts of them, for inspection. In the period in question, the IAEA has chosen to inspect the following parts of the BNFL Sellafield facility: the THORP Fuel Receipt and Storage area, the Special Nuclear Materials Store 9, the Oxide Fuel Storage Ponds, and the THORP Plutonium Store. The number of person days of inspection effort involved in these inspections has reduced from some 290 per year in 1994 to about 190 in 2000—reflecting moves by the IAEA to focus its efforts on the facility's major plutonium storage areas. Reporting on IAEA safeguards activities is included in the IAEA's Annual Reports (accessible at the IAEA's website).

Venture Capital Funds

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her answer of 29 November 2000, Official Report, column 1039–40W, on venture capital funds (RDAs), which companies SEEDA has invested in using the regional venture capital funds.

Alan Johnson: Regional Venture Capital Funds (RVCFs) are being established to ensure that appropriate small businesses in each of the English regions are able to access equity based finance in amounts below £500,000 and to demonstrate to institutional investors that robust returns can be made in this sector. All RVCFs will be commercially focused and experienced private sector fund managers will make all investment decisions.
	Following a competitive bidding process a SEEDA sponsored proposal to establish a fund in the south-east region received a conditional offer of support from the Small Business Service (SBS). The fund in the SEEDA region is expected to begin investing in spring 2002.

Gender Pay Gap

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what assessment she has made of the gender pay gap in the private sector for women in (a) full-time and (b) part-time employment;
	(2)  if she will publish the most recent figures to show women's mean hourly earnings as a proportion of men's broken down by occupation.

Ruth Kelly: I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Vernon Coaker, dated 12 December 2001
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions about the earnings of women compared to men. (21777, 21780).
	The New Earnings Survey (NES) can provide hourly earnings data for full-time and part-time employees, broken down by gender. The release of NES data is restricted to figures that are derived from a sufficiently large sample of employees, and have an acceptable level of accuracy. In the attached table, data has been provided for average hourly earnings for males and females and female earnings as a proportion of male earnings by occupation and for the private sector. These are based on the 2000 NES, the latest survey for which data are available.
	
		Average hourly earnings(3) of men and women and women's hourly earnings as a proportion of men's hourly earnings by occupation and in the private sector by full-time and part-time(4)
		
			   Men (£) Women (£) Proportion 
		
		
			 All occupations(5) 11.26 9.13 0.81 
			 Managers and administrators 17.80 12.83 0.72 
			 Professional occupations 16.44 14.98 0.91 
			 Associate professional and technical occupations 13.78 10.96 0.80 
			 Clerical and secretarial occupations 7.47 7.28 0.97 
			 Craft and related occupations 8.41 6.13 0.73 
			 Personal and protective service occupations 8.60 6.19 0.72 
			 Sales occupations 9.04 6.45 0.71 
			 Plant and machine operatives 7.43 5.83 0.78 
			 Other occupations 6.41 5.22 0.81 
			 Private sector
			 Full-time 11.16 8.50 0.76 
			 Part-time 7.14 6.09 0.85 
		
	
	(3) Earnings are for employees on adult rates, whose pay for the survey period was unaffected by absence and exclude overtime.
	(4) Great Britain, April 2000, not seasonally adjusted.
	(5) The earnings data by occupation is for full-time employees only.
	Source:
	New Earnings Survey.

Enterprise Grant Areas

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she will publish the results of the review of enterprise grant areas; and if she will make a statement.

Nigel Griffiths: The enterprise grant scheme is being considered as part of the wider review of DTI business support. Any further changes to the geographical coverage of the scheme will not be decided until after the end of the wider review.

Standing Committee on Regional Affairs

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will table a motion under Standing Order No. 117(6) to refer (a) the progress made by regional development agencies in fulfilling their objects, (b) the role of regional chambers in scrutinising RDAs, (c) the contribution made by RDAs in addressing strategic transport issues, (d) the progression made with economic regeneration of EU Objective 1 regions, (e) the issues and concerns raised about the forthcoming Regional White Paper and (f) other matters, to the Standing Committee on Regional Affairs.

Sally Keeble: I have been asked to reply.
	A motion was agreed by the House on 5 December that the Committee meet to discuss 'Regional Governance in England' on 18 December.

TRANSPORT, LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND THE REGIONS

Railtrack

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 21 November 2001, Official Report, column 276W, on Railtrack, if he will place in the Library advice he has received on contingency plans if the Company Limited by Guarantee fails to achieve a credit rating of A/A2.

David Jamieson: The credit rating of the proposed Company Limited by Guarantee would depend upon its structure and financial framework.

Railtrack

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the total length of track on the rail network which has been replaced was (a) in each month between January 2000 and November 2001 and (b) in each year between 1990 to 2001 (i) in total, (ii) subdivided by zonal area and (iii) subdivided by train operating company area.

David Jamieson: The following table from Railtrack shows for each calendar year between 1990 and 2000, the annual totals of rails replaced nationally and by Railtrack Zone. I understand that data are not available according to calendar month or train operating company area.
	
		Miles of rails replaced per year by Railtrack Zone and nationally
		
			 Zone 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 
		
		
			 Southern 57.6 53.6 85.2 55.3 31.5 32.1 49.2 54.3 45.4 21.3 31.4 
			 Great Western 19.1 29.1 28.4 47.7 22.6 12.7 32.7 30.1 29.2 48.2 36.7 
			 Midlands 36.7 24.4 12.8 28.0 23.4 19.6 16.8 32.2 39.1 31.2 31.0 
			 North West 50.3 47.0 43.3 21.8 23.3 10.4 42.5 11.1 19.0 15.8 13.7 
			 London North Eastern 52.0 18.5 28.2 38.6 35.6 19.3 26.9 36.0 28.5 39.7 81.3 
			 East Anglia 12.6 11.5 13.9 7.4 11.9 10.4 17.9 16.9 20.3 23.3 24.9 
			 Scotland 8.4 5.3 11.3 7.6 2.5 4.7 10.9 8.9 25.4 30.6 29.5 
			  
			 National 236.7 189.4 223.1 206.4 150.8 109.2 196.9 189.5 206.9 210.1 248.5

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions on how many occasions he has met the Railtrack administrator since 7 October.

David Jamieson: Officials meet him regularly and report to Ministers.

Railtrack

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what discussions his Department has held with the Treasury on the treatment of Railtrack while in administration in the national accounts.

Stephen Byers: holding answer 10 December 2001
	My Department discusses a range of issues with the Treasury. They include the possible treatment of Railtrack plc in the national accounts.

Roads

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many road schemes costing more than £5 million were commissioned between 1992 and 1997.

David Jamieson: Work started on 70 local and 76 trunk major road schemes between the financial years 1992–93 and 1996–97.

Rail Speed Restrictions

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many speed restrictions on railways there were for each month between January 2000 and November 2001 (a) in total, (b) subdivided by zonal area and (c) subdivided by train operating company area.

David Jamieson: Railtrack reports that the number of temporary speed restrictions in place across its network in Great Britain for each month was:
	
		
			   Number 
		
		
			 October 2000 504 
			 November 626 
			 December 1,100 
			 January 2001 1,045 
			 February 964 
			 March 1,188 
			 April 908 
			 May 779 
			 June 773 
			 July 742 
			 August 753 
			 September 696 
			 October 675 
			 November 659 
		
	
	Note:
	Prior to October 2000 national figures were not compiled
	These national figures cannot meaningfully be broken down into the areas covered by each train operating company area because the services of many train operating companies overlap. Individual speed restrictions will often affect the trains of several operators all using that line.

District Line

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how much money has been spent on repairs and renewals on the District line in each of the past six years.

David Jamieson: This is an operational matter for London Underground. London Underground, however, advise that the following has been spent on repairs and renewals on the District Line:
	
		
			   £ million 
		
		
			 1996–97 47.4 
			 1997–98 49.5 
			 1998–99 64.4 
			 1999–2000 61.5 
			 2000–01 77.5 
		
	
	Reliable data for 1995–96 are not available.

Rents

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what percentage real terms increase in each year he predicts for formula rents for (a) registered social landlords and (b) council tenants in Barnet until 2011.

Sally Keeble: We estimate that council rents in Barnet would rise by an average of 1.6 per cent. in real terms in 2002–03 and 2.2 per cent. a year in real terms thereafter until 2011–12 if rents are adjusted in line with our proposals. Over the period 1991–92 to 2001–02, council rents in Barnet rose on average 2.5 per cent. a year in real terms. Estimates for future years are based on property valuations and other data provided by the London Borough of Barnet which may be subject to amendment. The figures for 2003–04 and later years may also be adjusted as a result of Spending Reviews.
	We do not hold data on the registered social landlord rents at the individual authority level. Nationally, our rent restructuring proposals would result in RSL rents rising by RPI plus 0.5 per cent. a year until 2011–12. This figure is subject to periodic reviews by the Housing Corporation.

Manchester International Airport Group

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what proportion of residents from each English region travelled from airports in the Manchester International Airport Group in the last year for which estimates are available;
	(2)  what proportion of residents of the North West Region travelled from airports in the Manchester International Airport Group in the last year for which estimates are available.

David Jamieson: The figures are not available in the form requested. The information that is available about the use of UK airports relates to the number of passenger journeys made to and from each airport, and not to the number of individual passengers who use each airport. The number of passenger journeys is as follows.
	
		Arrivals and departures of UK residents at the Manchester International Airport Group(6) by region of residence of passenger: 1999–2000(7) -- Thousand
		
			 Standard region Passenger journeys 
		
		
			 North 555 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 3,785 
			 East Midlands 1,787 
			 East Anglia 33 
			 South East 450 
			 South West 275 
			 West Midlands 1,218 
			 North West 7,118 
			 Region unknown(8) 739 
			 England 15,960 
		
	
	(6) Manchester, Bournemouth, East Midlands and Humberside airports.
	(7) Figures for Manchester and Bournemouth airports are for 2000, those for East Midlands and Humberside are for 1999.
	(8) This relates to journeys where the relevant information was not collected from the passenger.

Local Government Finance

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement about the local finance settlement for the London borough of Havering.

Alan Whitehead: We announced the provisional local government finance settlement for 2002–03 to the House on Tuesday 4 December 2001. Havering will receive £202.869 million in their provisional Standard Spending Assessment for 2002–03, an increase of £10.357 million (or 5.4 per cent). This translates into £143.003 million in provisional grant for 2002–03, an increase of £7.605 million (or 5.6 per cent). These increases are on a like for like basis, adjusted for changes in functions. The final settlement will be announced early in the new year.

Council Tax Benefit

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 29 November 2001, Official Report, column 1067W, on council tax benefit, for what reasons the announcement on the council tax benefit subsidy limitation scheme has not been made; and if he will hold consultations for this year's settlement for Poole unitary authority.

Alan Whitehead: We have announced the abolition of the council tax benefit subsidy limitation scheme with effect from 2002–03 in the White Paper "Strong Local Leadership—Quality Public Services."
	My officials sent a consultation paper on the local government finance settlement for 2002–03 to local authorities on Tuesday 4 December. Under the proposals, Poole unitary authority receives an increase in general grant of £2.9 million, or 4.4 per cent. The covering letter to the consultation paper invited local authorities to make written representations on the proposals in time for them to be received by Thursday 10 January.

Private Landlords

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what plans he has to allow local authorities to register private landlords; and if he will make a statement.

Sally Keeble: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Wansbeck (Mr. Murphy) on 4 December 2001, Official Report, column 284W.

Regional Government

Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what consultations he has had with the National Assembly for Wales when preparing the forthcoming White Paper on regional government in England.

Alan Whitehead: The White Paper will be about regional governance in England. However, meeting in Cardiff on 30 October 2001, the annual plenary meeting of the Joint Ministerial Committee (which brings together Ministers of the UK Government and of the devolved Administrations) noted the progress on the Government's White Paper on English regional governance. The devolved Administrations expressed their support for extending the benefits of devolution where there was a regional demand for this, and offered to assist the process based on their experience of devolution to date.
	The National Assembly for Wales will be consulted in the usual way on any issues arising in or from the White Paper which will affect its responsibilities or operations.

Regional Government

Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if the role of regional development agencies has been considered in the preparation of the White Paper on English regional government.

Alan Whitehead: The role of the regional development agencies is being considered in the preparation of the White Paper.

Regional Government

Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment has been made of devolution in other EU member states when preparing the forthcoming White Paper on regional government in England.

Alan Whitehead: We are looking at a wide range of information sources during the preparation of the forthcoming White Paper. The Department's own review of research on international experience, published in October 2000, shows that EU member states have a wide variety of approaches to devolution.

Overseas Vehicle Registration

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many haulage (a) firms and (b) vehicles have moved from UK registration to overseas registration in the past three years.

David Jamieson: The information on the number of firms that have registered abroad is not available. It is estimated that around 200 vehicles were registered in other member states while still specified on British operators' licences. Following a Transport Tribunal ruling in January 2001 the UK licensing authorities deemed it no longer acceptable for foreign registered vehicles to be used under the authority of a British operator's licence.

Railways

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many different point-to-point rail routes were operated in (a) 1993, (b) 1997 and (c) 2001.

David Jamieson: This would depend on the definition of a point-to-point rail route. The relevant National Rail timetables contain all the planned services for particular years. Copies are in the Library of the House.

Buses

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many buses have been registered to operate in England and Wales in each of the past seven years.

Sally Keeble: The information is available for the years 1997–98 to 2000–01:
	
		Total number of buses(9) registered to operate in England and Wales
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 1997–98 49,400 
			 1998–99 51,200 
			 1999–2000 51,200 
			 2000–01 51,600 
		
	
	(9) Having nine or more seats
	Source:
	DTLR survey of PSV operators

Buses

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many different bus routes there were in England and Wales in (a) 1997 and (b) 2001.

Sally Keeble: This information is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, the figures for total vehicle kilometres operated by local bus services in England and Wales during the period are as follows.
	
		
			  Million kilometres 
		
		
			 1996–97 2,270 
			 1997–98 2,259 
			 1998–99 2,284 
			 1999–2000 2,247 
			 2000–01 2,269

Buses

Candy Atherton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many bus routes in Cornwall have benefited from Government funding in the last 12 months.

Sally Keeble: Monitoring information supplied by Cornwall county council shows that a total of 99 routes were supported by them using rural bus subsidy grant in 2000–01. In addition, the council receives revenue support grant to assist in meeting its expenditure needs, including the provision of other subsidised bus services.
	Rural Bus Challenge funding was provided in 2000–01 for the Helston-Redruth Branchline Bus Service and the Gorran and District Ring-and-Ride projects. Another project to improve a number of services in the Bodmin Moor area was also approved in the 2000 challenge competition.

Transport Council

Jimmy Hood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the outcome was of the Transport Council held in Brussels on 6 and 7 December; what the Government's stance was on each issue discussed, including their voting record; and if he will make a statement.

John Spellar: The Transport Council met in Brussels on 7 December. I represented the United Kingdom.
	The main focus of the Council was on the Galileo satellite navigation project and on aviation security. I am pleased to say that on both issues the outcome was satisfactory from our point of view.
	On Galileo, Ministers were asked to agree to the release of funding from the Trans-European Networks (TENs) budget to enable the project to proceed to its next phase, and to agree on the management structure that the project would have. I was among Ministers to press for deferral of decisions on the project. I drew attention to the concerns which the recently issued PricewaterhouseCoopers report had raised, on public sector funding, overall cost and lack of commercial benefits. The report made clear that any decision on the joint undertaking would have funding implications, so I argued that a decision on this should not be taken while funding issues were not sufficiently clear. There was also some discussion of the details of the draft Regulation to establish the joint undertaking, but a majority of member states declined the Commission's request for a vote to agree the text. Decisions on the next phase of Galileo were deferred and no formal conclusions were agreed. The Presidency indicated that the Galileo project might be discussed further at the European Council at Laeken later this month.
	The Council reached political agreement on a regulation establishing a Community framework for airport security standards and monitoring. The Commission had initially insisted on arrangements to oversee member states who were operating more stringent security measures. But in response to concerns which I and others expressed about the need for freedom to respond to perceived security threats it accepted that member states should be free to apply additional measures, provided they were in accordance with Community law. This important measure should ensure that high standards are in place throughout the EU and create a safer environment for air passengers using EU airports.
	There was discussion of a draft directive on occurrence reporting in civil aviation, on the transposition of JAR-OPS standards into EC law, and on a draft directive on the training of aviation cabin crew. No decisions were reached on the first two issues, and the Presidency concluded that no progress was possible on the third. The UK view is that provision for cabin crew training should be included in the JAR-OPS legislation.
	The Council noted the difficult economic situation faced by the air transport sector. On war-risk insurance, member states wished to return to a market approach, but the industry was not ready for that yet. In the interim the Commission was prepared to continue to approve state aid measures up to end March 2002, subject to monthly reviews. Ministers also noted the need to consider urgently ways to address possible unfair competition from third country carriers; the Commission will present a proposal in the near future.
	The Council noted the importance of making early progress on the recent proposal for a Directive to replace the hushkits regulation.
	The Council reached political agreement on the regulation to establish a European Maritime Safety Agency, which was proposed as part of the ERIKA II package of maritime safety proposals. We are content with the text as agreed.
	The Council agreed the text of a Directive to simplify reporting formalities for ships leaving and entering Community ports. It was able to accept the European Parliament's position on the proposal, and therefore reached agreement at the First Reading.
	I and the French Minister, with support from the Commissioner, stressed the need for member states to make quick progress on ratifying the Hazardous and Noxious Substances convention and other maritime pollution compensation Conventions, as the December 2000 Council Conclusions had urged.
	The Council noted a Presidency progress report on the proposal to update Regulation 3820/85 on commercial drivers' hours and rest periods. Further consideration of this will pass to the Spanish Presidency.
	I maintained the UK's opposition to the proposal to extend the fitting of speed limiting devices to goods vehicles above 3.5 tonnes and to coaches/buses with over eight passenger seats regardless of weight. I argued that we were not in favour of a threshold below 7.5 tonnes, but that an extension of European regulation to 7.5 tonnes would be in line with UK law. I expressed my doubt that the safety and environmental consequences of fitting limiters to lighter vehicles would be beneficial. The Presidency concluded that Council adopted the proposal by qualified majority. The proposal will now be considered by the European Parliament early in the new year.
	The Council reached political agreement on a draft directive setting out initial and ongoing training requirements for professional drivers.
	Following the recent fires in Alpine road tunnels, the Commission reported to the Council that it would propose legislation early in 2002 to improve safety. The proposals will address issues relating to technical equipment, driver information, traffic controls and training of operational staff. We await further details of the proposals, and will need to examine them carefully.
	The Presidency presented its conclusions on the Commission's White Paper on transport policy, published earlier this year. The Presidency largely agreed with the White Paper's assessment of the negative impact of uneven development of different transport modes, and believed that modal shift and enhancement of quality should be promoted. It hoped the Council would further examine the White Paper and looked forward to Commission proposals to implement the priorities emerging from further discussion.
	Under Other Business, I raised the issue of the new digital tachograph and the deficiencies in the Regulation on which the specification is based. I had previously written to the Commissioner asking her to propose amendments to address these shortcomings, which would create serious enforcement difficulties. Other Ministers at the Council supported me in asking the Commission to re-examine the issue and bring forward a new proposal to amend the Regulation. I expressed my disappointment at the Commission's response, which did not address the concerns we had put forward.
	Finally, the German Minister spoke of the safety benefits of ensuring that rigid bull bars were not fixed to road vehicles above 2.5 tonnes, through voluntary agreements with industry. The Commission agreed that this was a useful suggestion, but stressed that it was the responsibility of the Internal Market Commissioner.
	No votes were taken at this Council.

Elderly Persons' Homes

Alan Hurst: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many elderly persons' homes there were in the (a) county of Essex and (b) unitary boroughs of Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea in (i) 1971, (ii) 1981, (iii) 1991 and (iv) 2001.

Sally Keeble: The information is as follows:
	
		
			  1971 1981 1991 2001 
		
		
			 County of Essex 
			 Independent (10)— (10)— 260 210 
			 Public Sector (10)— (10)— 55 12 
			  
			 Thurrock 
			 Independent (10)— (10)— (11)— 12 
			 Public Sector (10)— (10)— (11)— 2 
			  
			 Southend-on-Sea 
			 Independent (10)— (10)— (11)— 65 
			 Public Sector (10)— (10)— (11)— 2 
		
	
	(10) Information not readily available
	(11) Included within "county" figure above

A1

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what timescale there is relating to the removal of the roundabouts between Blythe and Peterborough on the A1.

David Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave yesterday (PQ 3108).

Planning Applications

Linda Perham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what recent guidance he has issued to local authorities on the procedure for considering major planning applications.

Sally Keeble: On Friday 2 November 2001, the Government announced new targets for 2002–03 for local authorities' handling of planning applications. The new targets for major planning applications are that 60 per cent. of major industrial, commercial and residential applications should be decided within 13 weeks.

Planning Applications

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will give reasons for not calling in planning applications.

Stephen Byers: As part of our fundamental review of the planning system, we have decided that as from today we will give reasons for our decision not to call in planning applications. This decision, which forms part of the raft of measures in our Planning Green Paper published today, is in the interests of transparency, good administration and best practice. The Courts have established that there is no legal obligation to provide reasons for not calling in an application.
	It should be borne in mind that the issue before him for decision is not whether the application should be granted planning permission but whether or not he should call it in for his own determination. The Secretary of State's policy on calling in planning applications—which is to be very selective—is set out in the written reply by the then Minister for the Regions, Regeneration and Planning, my right hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield, Central (Mr. Caborn) to a parliamentary question on 16 June 1999, Official Report, column 138. That approach is not to interfere with the jurisdiction of local planning authorities unless it is necessary to do so. Local planning authorities are normally best placed to make decisions relating to their areas and it is right that, in general, they should be free to carry out their duties responsibly, with the minimum of interference.

Channel Tunnel Rail Link

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when the Channel Tunnel Rail Link is due to be (a) completed and (b) operational.

David Jamieson: Section 1 of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL), which runs from the Channel Tunnel to Fawkham Junction in Kent, is expected to be completed and operational in 2003. Section 2, from Ebbsfleet in Kent to St. Pancras in London, is expected to be completed and operational in 2007.

Channel Tunnel Rail Link

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the total costs up to 1 December associated with the negotiations for the Channel Tunnel Rail Link are.

David Jamieson: The Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions employs a number of consultants who advise on engineering, financial, legal and other issues related to the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL). Their work has recently included the negotiations for finalising section 2 of the CTRL, and negotiations with Railtrack relating to their purchase of section 1. The total annual budget for CTRL advisers is around £7 million.

Aircraft Noise

Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what recent research he has undertaken to assess the impact of aircraft noise and sleep disturbance; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The Department of Transport in 1992 published the "Report of a Field Study of Aircraft Noise and Sleep Disturbance". This was and remains the largest UK study of the relationship between aircraft noise and physical sleep disturbance.
	More recently the following reports, commissioned by the DETR, have been published:
	"Night Noise Contours: A Feasibility Study" (Porter et al, National Physical Laboratory, 1997)
	"Adverse effects of night-time aircraft noise" (Porter et al., NATS/DORA R&D Report 9964, March 2000)
	"Aircraft Noise and Sleep—1999 UK Trial Methodology Study" (Flindell et al., ISVR, Southampton University, November 2000)
	"Perceptions of Aircraft Noise, Sleep and Health" (Diamond et al., DSS, Southampton University, December 2000).
	Copies of these reports are available in the House Library and a fuller explanation of Government-supported research on aircraft noise and sleep disturbance is available on the Department's website at http://www.aviation.dtlr.gov.uk/ sleepdisturbance/index.htm.
	The then Under-Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, my hon. Friend the Member for Coventry, North-East (Mr. Ainsworth), announced in May 2001 that as a new full-scale objective study into sleep disturbance would be unlikely to add significantly to our understanding, the Government would concentrate instead on further research into subjective responses to annoyance by night and by day. Since that announcement a contract for the project has been awarded and a steering group representing aviation and environmental interests has been formed to oversee the work, and has met once. We are also setting up a peer review group representing both national and international experts. As well as re-assessing the association between the Leq index and reported annoyance the study will attempt to examine subjective valuation of the nuisance from aircraft noise.

VED Rebates

Paul Stinchcombe: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many motorists qualified for a VED rebate because they bought a licence for the year starting July 2000 with half yearly payments.

David Jamieson: Licences taken out between July and October 2000 did not qualify for the rebate. The total number of six-monthly licences taken out in the period November 2000 to June 2001 was approximately 2.8 million.

VED Rebates

Paul Stinchcombe: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many hon. Members have made representations to his Department about constituents who missed out on a VED rebate because they bought their licences for the year starting July 2000 with a single payment.

David Jamieson: The number of such cases referred to the Department to date by hon. Members stands at 67.

VED Rebates

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what research he has commissioned into the effectiveness of the goods vehicle excise duty relief scheme; and if he will publish the results of this research.

David Jamieson: The rebate scheme for goods vehicle excise duty had two stages: a rebate of up to 50 per cent. of the cost of a licence against licences in force on 30 November 2000; and a similar rebate against all licences taken out between December 2000 and November 2001. Following these transitional arrangements a new structure of vehicle excise duty for goods vehicles came into effect on 1 December 2001.
	Rebates totalling £236 million were paid out in respect of some 250,000 goods vehicles against licences in force on 30 November 2000. Although the total amount rebated against licences taken out between December 2000 and November 2001 has yet to be finalised, it is expected to be of a similar order.
	The Government have not formally commissioned any research on the impact of these rebate schemes. The Road Haulage Forum gives Ministers and the haulage industry a regular opportunity to discuss, take account of and assess the impacts of fiscal and other factors affecting the haulage industry.

Highways Agency

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how the extra funding under the Winter Supplementary Estimates to the Supply Estimates 2001–02 for the Highways Agency is to be spent.

David Jamieson: The extra funding will be spent on local network management and technology schemes, the M42 active traffic management pilot, the system for managing project and on the civil service reform fund programme. The Winter Supplementary Estimates also include a reduction in funds that have been transferred to local authorities for roads that have been detrunked this year.

Housing Revenue Account Subsidy

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what research was commissioned prior to the decision to decrease the housing revenue account subsidy, as outlined on page 5 of the Winter Supplementary Estimates to the Supply Estimates 2001–02; and if he will publish this research.

Sally Keeble: The decision to decrease the housing revenue account subsidy provision for 2001–02 in the Winter Supplementary Estimates was informed by changes in the amounts claimed by local housing authorities for reimbursement of the rent rebate element on their second advance claim forms. These claims govern on-account payments for the second half of the financial year.

New Local Government Network

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what recent meetings Government Ministers have had with representatives of the New Local Government Network.

Alan Whitehead: Colleagues and I meet up with representatives of the New Local Government Network and many other groups interested in local government from time to time. My right hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government and I met with representatives of the New Local Government Network on 20 June and on 18 July. The Minister for Local Government attended conferences held by the New Local Government Network on strategic partnering on 16 July and on procuring best value outcomes on 30 October. I spoke at an NLGN conference on best value on 3 December and met representatives of the NLGN at a conference on 29 October. Ministerial colleagues also hold meetings with NLGN representatives from time to time, the details of which are not recorded by this Department.

Lincolnshire County Council

Gillian Merron: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions whether the National Standards Board is investigating complaints on alleged breaches of the code of conduct by Lincolnshire county councillors; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Whitehead: holding answer 11 December 2001
	The Standards Board is not able to investigate any complaints about breaches of the code of conduct until the council has adopted a code as required under section 50 of the Local Government Act 2000. I believe that Lincolnshire county council has yet to adopt such a code.

Planning

Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when he will publish his Green Paper on Planning.

Stephen Byers: Following our review of the planning system, I am today publishing a Green Paper "Planning: delivering a fundamental change" setting out our proposals for reform.
	A good planning system is vital to our quality of life. We need a system that fully engages people in shaping the future of their communities and local economies. The present planning system is too complicated, too slow and engages insufficiently with local communities. We need to make it more efficient and more accessible so that it better serves everybody with an interest in the growth and development of their community, whether individuals, businesses or representative organisations.
	The Green Paper sets out our proposals for simplifying the complex hierarchy of regional, county, unitary and local plans. We propose to replace local plans with new Local Development Frameworks that will have two main components: a set of core criteria that will allow local authorities to express a vision for the future of their areas and a strategy for its delivery; and action plans for specific areas where detailed planning is required. These include, for example, neighbourhoods, villages, town centres and major development sites. We intend that action plans should be a particular focus for community participation in the planning of local areas.
	The Green Paper proposes a much stronger emphasis on customer service, including delivery to business. New targets for processing planning applications by local authorities will distinguish business from householder applications in order that all applicants should have a clear and realistic expectation of the speed of decision. We propose that delivery contracts should be agreed between local authorities and business for the biggest planning applications that would include an agreed timetable for reaching planning decisions.
	The Green Paper proposes the introduction of business planning zones in which planning consent will not be necessary for certain businesses so long as strict quality standards are met. We propose that each region should have at least one zone to promote technology companies.
	The Green Paper seeks to put communities at the heart of the planning system. We propose better community participation in the preparation of our new Local Development Frameworks and action plans. A statement of community involvement will set standards for consultation on planning applications and plans. Master planning of major sites will help developers plan for higher quality development, in partnership with local people and local authorities. There will be a much clearer procedure for submitting planning applications and a new emphasis on openness and accountability within the planning process.
	I also propose to speed up the handling of planning applications that have been called in and appeals that have been recovered for my determination. I give reasons where applications are called in but, up to now, they have not been given when I decide not to call in an application. In the interests of greater openness I shall, from today, give reasons in both circumstances.
	Copies of the Green Paper are being sent to every Member representing an English constituency and they will be available in the Vote Office and in the Library. An electronic copy can be viewed at www.planning.dtlr.gov.uk.

Compulsory Purchase and Compensation

Helen Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when he will publish his consultation paper on Compulsory Purchase and Compensation.

Stephen Byers: Following the fundamental review of compulsory purchase procedures and compensation, I am publishing today a consultation paper setting out our proposals for major changes to the way that the compulsory purchase and compensation system operates. Our objective is to make the system simpler, fairer and quicker. We will:
	simplify the law
	clarify the powers available for acquiring land for planning and regeneration purposes
	speed up the confirmation process
	ensure that implementation follows promptly once an order is confirmed
	provide a fairer basis for assessing compensation.

Speed Cameras

Michael Clapham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what evidence he has collated on how speed cameras have contributed to reducing road accidents in the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: A Home Office study published in 1996 showed that accidents fell by 28 per cent. and speeds were reduced by an average of 4.2 mph at speed camera sites. Eight police force areas have been trialling a new funding system for speed cameras. Monitoring of the first year's operation of the pilots has shown a 47 per cent. reduction in those killed and seriously injured at camera sites and an 18 per cent. reduction in KSIs in the areas as a whole. The new funding system is now available nationally and I fully expect that, as more areas join, the numbers of those killed or seriously injured will decrease still further.

Gibraltar

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what representations he has received from the US Government on Spain's policy that the European Commission's proposal for a Regulation on Aviation Security should not apply to Gibraltar;
	(2)  what representations he has received from NATO on Spain's policy that the European Commission's proposal for a Regulation on Aviation Security does not apply to Gibraltar.

David Jamieson: We have received no such representations.

Neighbourhood Wardens

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  if applications may be made for new neighbourhood wardens schemes starting in 2004;
	(2)  what discussions he has had with (a) the Neighbourhood Renewal Unit and (b) other bodies on marketing, expansion and funding opportunities for the neighbourhood wardens scheme;
	(3)  what the budget is for the neighbourhood wardens scheme for (a) 2001 and (b) 2002;
	(4)  which areas are running the neighbourhood wardens scheme, and what assessment he has made of the results of the scheme in each area;
	(5)  what funding will be available for the (a) continuation of current and (b) creation of new neighbourhood wardens schemes after 2004.

Sally Keeble: Following discussions with officials I announced continued funding for existing neighbourhood warden schemes in England at the annual wardens conference on 19 November. Marketing expansion and funding opportunities for wardens schemes were discussed at that conference and continue to be reviewed.
	There are 85 neighbourhood and 125 street warden schemes covering each of the government regions. The Government have commissioned a national evaluation of the neighbourhood warden programme which is due for completion by mid 2003. The evaluation is intended to provide an assessment of scheme impacts and to understand the processes of scheme implementation. It is not possible to consider each and every scheme in the same detail but care is taken to ensure that all regions receive roughly equal coverage that enables a picture of national-level impact to be established. In addition, schemes are encouraged to undertake local-level evaluations appropriate to their needs. Street warden schemes in England have yet to start and will be subject to a similarly rigorous evaluation process.
	Government funding for neighbourhood wardens is £5 million for 2001–02 and £4.5 million for 2002–03. For street wardens the figures are £5 million and £10 million respectively.
	The continuation of funding for existing and future warden schemes will depend on the outcome of the 2002 Spending Review and at this stage it is too early to make applications for new schemes.

Galileo Project

John McWilliam: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment he has made of (a) the economic impact of the Galileo project for the UK transport sector and (b) the number of jobs the project will create for British industry; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: A UK cost-benefit assessment carried out in September for my Department and the British National Space Centre by ESYS Consulting suggested that Galileo could yield net economic benefits for UK users and suppliers, based on European Commission studies and discussions with potential UK users. However, the recent study for the Commission by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC), released on 22 November, excludes supplier benefits and estimates a much reduced and narrower range of benefits for transport users than previous Commission estimates. The report also made clear that there would be a need for continuing public sector funding throughout future phases of the project. On Friday the Transport Council deferred decisions on the next stage of Galileo in order to allow time for further consideration of the PWC report.

Transport Expenditure

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what percentage of Britain's national income is spent on (a) roads, (b) railways and (c) the underground.

David Jamieson: About 1.4 per cent. of the UK's gross domestic product is spent on the provision and maintenance of transport infrastructure and support for public transport services.
	Of this figure, about one third relates to roads and one third is spent on the railways. The remaining one third covers all other forms of transport spending, of which spending on London Underground forms a small proportion.

TREASURY

Departmental Rents

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the annual rental value is of the London Headquarters of (a) HM Customs and Excises, (b) the Inland Revenue, (c) the Government Actuary's Department and (d) the UK Debt Management Office; and what assessment he has made of the rental values of similar office space size in (i) Coventry, (ii) Birmingham, (iii) Wolverhampton and (iv) Stoke on Trent.

Ruth Kelly: The following table lists the annual rental value of the London headquarters of (a) HM Customs and Excise; (b) the Inland Revenue; (c) the Government Actuary's Department; and (d) the Debt Management Office. HM Customs and Excise and the Government Actuary's Department co-locate in the London accommodation, so the rental value has been apportioned based on their percentage of occupation.
	No assessment has been made of the rental value of similar offices in (i) Coventry, (ii) Birmingham, (iii) Wolverhampton and (iv) Stoke on Trent as the Departments do not have offices of a comparable size. Neither the Government Actuary's Department nor the Debt Management Office occupy any space outside of London.
	
		Annual rental value of London headquarters
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 HM Customs and Excise 5,000,000 
			 Inland Revenue 2,200,000 
			 Government Actuary's Department 650,484 
			 Debt Management Office 957,852

Mortgage Advice

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to allow the Financial Services Authority to take over the regulation of mortgage advice to consumers; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: holding answer 25 October 2001
	I am announcing today that, in the light of representations made by the industry and others, and taking account of the views of the report and responses to the Banking Services Consumer Codes Review, I have decided to extend the FSA's powers to enable it to regulate mortgage intermediaries and advice.

Manufacturing Summit

David Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if (a) he and (b) other Treasury Ministers will attend the manufacturing summit in early December.

Paul Boateng: holding answer 19 November 2001
	The Chief Secretary to the Treasury attended the "Manufacturing and the Regions" summit on 5 December.

HIPC Initiative

David Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list (a) the countries eligible for debt relief under the heavily indebted poorer countries initiative whose debt repayments to the United Kingdom are now being held in trust, (b) the amount of money held in trust in respect of each such country and (c) the level of debt outstanding to the United Kingdom from each such country.

Paul Boateng: Since the Chancellor made the announcement on 2 December, the following countries have made payments that are eligible for the hold in trust policy:
	
		
			 Country Payments held in trust (£000) Amount of debt (£ million) 
		
		
			 Burkina Faso 64.9 1.0 
			 Central African Republic 2.4 0.5 
			 Ethiopia 60.9 15.4 
			 Guinea 91.7 5.3 
			 Vietnam 730.5 54.4 
			 Yemen 106.8 3.3 
		
	
	Ethiopia and Guinea have since reached their Decision Point, where they are no longer required to make payments to the UK. Burkina Faso had reached Decision Point before December 2000, but interim relief has been suspended. Payments from Burkina Faso will continue to be held in trust.
	The following countries have reached a Decision Point since the Chancellor made the announcement, but prior to Decision Point did not make any payments for holding in trust. Now that they have reached a Decision Point, they are all receiving 100 per cent. debt relief and are no longer required to make any payments to the UK.
	
		£ million 
		
			 Country Amount of debt 
		
		
			 Chad 0 
			 Gambia 0 
			 Guinea Bissau 0 
			 Madagascar 25.5 
			 Malawi 3.9 
			 Nicaragua 1.0 
			 Niger 10.9 
			 Rwanda 0.1 
			 Sao Tome and Principe 0 
			 Zambia 239.2 
		
	
	The following countries have not yet reached a Decision Point under HIPC, and any payments they do make will be held in trust:
	
		£ million 
		
			 Country Amount of debt 
		
		
			 Angola 118.6 
			 Burma 23.1 
			 Burundi 0 
			 Congo 143.1 
			 Cote D'Ivoire 48.0 
			 DR Congo 165.5 
			 Ghana 216.7 
			 Kenya 52.9 
			 Laos PDR 0 
			 Liberia 18.4 
			 Sierra Leone 3.6 
			 Somalia 29.2 
			 Sudan 374.9 
			 Togo 15.7

HIPC Initiative

David Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his policy on the treatment of interest earned on money paid as debt service payments by highly indebted poor countries to the United Kingdom and currently held in trust by the Government.

Paul Boateng: Money that is held in trust will be returned when the proceeds can be shown to go towards poverty reduction. At that point, the UK will return all payments made since 1 December 2000. The commitment of the Chancellor's speech on 2 December 2000 was that the UK will not benefit financially from these historic debts and as such, all payments made will be returned to fund poverty reduction and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals in HIPC countries.

Small Businesses

Chris Grayling: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 20 November 2001, Official Report, column 271W, for what reason he will not reply on the representations he has received on changes to insurance policies and premiums for small businesses since 11 September; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: We receive a great many representations from both industry and individuals. Identifying those that have been sent on a specific subject could not be done without disproportionate cost.

Golden Jubilee Coin

Graham Brady: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans have been made for the production of a Crown piece to mark the Queen's Golden Jubilee.

Ruth Kelly: holding answer 27 November 2001
	Her Majesty the Queen has been graciously pleased to approve the Chancellor of the Exchequer's recommendation that in 2002 a crown piece should be issued to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Her Majesty's accession to the throne. Further details will be announced shortly.

Earnings

Lynne Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of people whose earnings were (a) below a third and (b) between a third and a half of median male earnings paid tax on each of the last six years.

Dawn Primarolo: Estimates of the proportion of taxpayers whose earnings were (a) below a third of male median earnings, and (b) between a third and a half of male median earnings are in the table:
	
		
			  Employee taxpayers as a percentage of employees  
			  Year with earnings less than 1/3 of male median earnings(12) with earnings between 1/3 and 1/2 of male median earnings(12) 
		
		
			 1995–96 61 95 
			 1996–97 56 91 
			 1997–98 56 93 
			 1998–99 56 100 
			 1999–2000 59 100 
			 2000–01 69 100 
		
	
	(12) Male median earnings figures are based on New Earnings Survey, full-time male employees on adult rates, whose pay for the survey period was unaffected by absence.
	The taxpayer estimates are based on the Survey of Personal Incomes and the employee estimates are based on the Labour Force Survey. These estimates are subject to sampling errors and changes in the percentages over time should be treated with caution.

Stamp Duty

Howard Flight: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  if he will place in the Library in respect of each ward where an exemption from stamp duty will be introduced the (a) average property price and (b) percentage of properties purchased where no stamp duty was paid in the last year for which information is available;
	(2)  what impact he expects the exemption from stamp duty to have on the prices of houses valued below £150,000 in wards in which an exemption from stamp duty will apply.

Paul Boateng: The ward-based information requested is not available.
	The Government intend the exemption to help in the revival of property markets in qualifying areas, which will make investment in these areas more attractive and encourage people to live and do business in them.

Food Supplements

Liam Fox: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people are employed in (a) the retail and (b) the manufacture of specialist health food products; and what assessment he has made of the impact on employment in these sectors of the forthcoming EU Directive on food supplements.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Dr. Liam Fox, dated 12 December 2001
	As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent question on the number of people employed in (a) the retail and (b) the manufacture of specialist health food products (21690).
	There are no separate figures available for retailing specialist health food products as these estimates are combined with other specialist retailing.
	In December 1999, the latest date for which estimates from the Annual Business Inquiry are available, there were 900 employee jobs in the manufacture of homogenised food preparations and dietetic food in Great Britain.
	I am advised by the Food Standards Agency that the proposed EU directive would not have any immediate effect on employment in these sectors as it would not immediately outlaw any products currently sold in the UK.

Departmental Staff (Home Working)

Colin Challen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps his Department is taking to encourage staff to work from home; and how many staff do so on a regular basis.

Ruth Kelly: The Treasury has a number of alternative working policies in place such as flexible working hours, working part time, compressed hours as well as working at home. These are available to all staff by agreement with their manager. Details are advertised on the Treasury's Intranet. All staff have the opportunity to work at home occasionally on appropriate work with their manager's agreement. About 30 members of staff regularly work at least one day a week at home with access to the Treasury's IT systems.

Hypothecated NHS Tax

Linda Perham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the public's willingness to pay a hypothecated NHS tax.

Andrew Smith: The Government have made their commitment to increasing resources over the next three years for the NHS, funded from general taxation and linked to reform. Decisions on taxation will be for future Budgets and spending will be for the Spending Review.

Customs and Excise (Fraud)

Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was (a) the total expenditure on HM Customs and Excise and (b) the total expenditure on counter-fraud work within HM Customs and Excise in the last year for which figures are available.

Paul Boateng: holding answer 10 December 2001
	Many Customs and Excise activities play an important part in countering fraud, including tax control work, debt collection and publicity. However, since 1 April 2001 the Department's restructured Law Enforcement function has had prime responsibility for tackling indirect tax fraud, drugs smuggling and the range of other criminal matters assigned to Customs and Excise. Many Customs Law Enforcement officers have a multi-functional role, tackling both tax fraud and non-tax criminality.
	Because of restructuring, it is not possible to provide equivalent figures for earlier years, but in 2001–02 the Law Enforcement function of Customs and Excise has a budget of some £320 million current, and £40 million capital. The Customs and Excise voted departmental expenditure limit (as amended by the recent Winter Supplementary) is £1,122 million.

Capital Assets

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 3 December 2001, Official Report, column 55W, on capital assets, what record the Office for National Statistics keeps of the advice it gives to Departments regarding the accounting treatment of PPPs.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Matthew Taylor, dated 12 December 2001
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent parliamentary question concerning what record the Office for National Statistics keeps of the advice it gives to Departments regarding the accounting treatment of Public Private Partnerships (PPPs). (22289)
	The Office for National Statistics (ONS) keeps records of all advice given on classification issues. The ONS has not however been asked for advice on the accounting treatment of capital assets under individual PPPs. This is decided by departments on the basis of generally accepted accounting practice, as specified in the Resource Accounting Manual published by HM Treasury. The National Audit Office audits department's decisions. The agreed treatment is reflected in the national accounts.

Social Exclusion

Andrew Selous: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many competitive grant schemes administered by his Department and its agencies were open in each of the last 10 years to organisations in the voluntary and community sector for the purposes of tackling social exclusion.

Ruth Kelly: No competitive grant schemes are currently administered, or have been administered in each of the last 10 years, by the Chancellor's Departments and agencies.

Social Exclusion

Andrew Selous: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  if he will publish a list of the grants made under the competitive grant schemes administered by his Department and its agencies open in each year since 1997 to organisations in the voluntary and community sector for the purposes of tackling social exclusion;
	(2)  if he will list the competitive grant schemes, administered by the Treasury and its agencies, open in each year since 1997 to organisations in the voluntary and community sector for the purposes of tackling social exclusion; and, for each scheme in each year (a) the number of applicants, (b) the number of successful applicants, (c) the total of grants awarded, (d) the number of pages in the application form and (e) if the grant can be used to fund the core costs of the applicant organisation;
	(3)  if he will place in the Library a copy of the application form for each of the competitive grant schemes administered by his Department and its agencies open in each year since 1997 to organisations in the voluntary and community sector for the purposes of tackling social exclusion.

Ruth Kelly: No competitive grant schemes are currently administered, or have been administered since 1997, by the Chancellor's Departments and agencies.

Social Exclusion

Andrew Selous: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate has been made of the administrative cost to the (a) state, (b) unsuccessful applicants and (c) successful applicants of the competitive grant schemes, provided by his Department and its agencies open in each year since 1997 to organisations in the voluntary and community sector for the purposes of tackling social exclusion.

Ruth Kelly: No competitive grant schemes are currently provided, or have been provided since 1997, by the Chancellor's Departments and agencies.

Spirits (Taxation)

Ian Stewart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his plans are for consultation on the proposal to introduce a tax stamps system for spirits.

Paul Boateng: Following initial discussions with the drinks industry over the summer, customs and Excise published on 11 December 2001 a formal consultation document on this proposal. A copy of the consultation document is available in the Library.

Financial Services Authority

Barbara Follett: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to extend the scope of the Financial Services Authority's responsibilities.

Ruth Kelly: In the light of representations made by the industry and others and taking account of the views of the report and responses to the Banking Services Consumer Codes Review, I have decided to extend the FSA's powers to enable it to regulate mortgage intermediaries and advice. The FSA will also be given responsibility for regulating general insurance intermediaries.
	Giving the FSA powers to regulate mortgage and insurance intermediaries will streamline regulation. Intermediaries selling a range of products—general insurance, pensions, or mortgages—will all come under the FSA as single regulator, minimising compliance costs.
	I intend to consult others on the appropriate transitional arrangements to ensure a smooth handover of responsibility to the FSA.
	A regulatory impact assessment of the decision to give the FSA responsibility for regulating mortgage advice and general insurance intermediaries is available in the Library.

Child Benefit

Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the rates of child benefit for the first and subsequent children from April 2002 required to ensure that if a higher rate taxpayer in receipt of child benefit paid tax on it at (a) the higher rate or (b) the standard rate, the net cash amount of benefit received remained at the level already announced from April 2002; and if he will estimate (i) the gross annual programme cost of increasing child benefit to those levels and (ii) the net cost to the Exchequer of raising child benefit to those levels (1) with no taxation and (2) with higher rate taxpayer recipients paying tax on the benefit at the higher rate, taking into account the consequential effects on working families tax credit, income support payments and other means-tested benefits.

Andrew Smith: Child benefit will be £15.75 per week for the first child and £10.55 per week for subsequent children from April 2002. If it were taxable at the basic rate, in order for a taxpayer to receive the same net benefit it would have to be increased to £20.20 per week for the first child and £13.55 per week for subsequent children. If it were taxable at the higher rate, the corresponding figures would be £26.25 per week for the first child and £17.60 per week for subsequent children.
	The gross programme cost of increasing child benefit to £20.20 per week for the first child and £13.55 per week for subsequent children would be £2.5 billion in 2002. The gross programme cost of increasing child benefit to £26.25 per week for the first child and £17.60 per week for subsequent children would be £6 billion in 2002. The net cost to the Exchequer of these increases would depend on how they were treated in income-related benefits and working families tax credit.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Maths Teachers

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many maths teachers were employed in secondary schools in (a) 1984, (b) 1988, (c) 1992, (d) 1996 and (e) 2000; and what their qualifications were.

Stephen Timms: Full-time teachers who spent some or all of their time teaching maths in English maintained secondary schools are as follows:
	
		
			  Academic year  
			  1983–84(13) 1987–88 1991–92 1996–97 
		
		
			 Maths teachers 40,500 35,500 31,000 25,200 
			
			  Qualifications—maths main subject(14)  
			 Degree 28 27 30 40 
			 BEd 6 8 9 16 
			 PGCE 0 7 10 11 
			 Cert. Ed. 19 15 15 12 
			 Other 3 3 4 2 
			  
			 Maths subsidiary or related subject(14) 18 14 10 — 
			 Other subjects(14) 26 25 22 20 
			  
			 Total(14) 100 100 100 100 
		
	
	(13) 1983–84 survey did not separately identify PGCEs which trained students to teach maths. Most maths-qualified teachers with a PGCE will be included in the 'degree' or 'other' columns
	(14) Percentage
	In 1996–97, subjects were not designated as main, subsidiary or related. All subjects were treated as at the same level. The concept of related subject was not used for maths.
	The percentages of teachers with each qualification have been rounded to the nearest whole number and as a result the component parts may not add to 100 per cent.
	Data for 1996–97 are the latest available.

Teacher Vacancies

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the levels of teacher vacancies were in January in (a) primary, (b) secondary and (c) special schools broken down by (i) Government office region, (ii) subject and (iii) level; and what changes there have been in these totals from those issued in the SFR 16/2001 on 20 April.

Stephen Timms: Teacher vacancies as a percentage of teachers in post in the English maintained schools sector in January 2001 were as follows:
	
		
			  Nursery and primary Secondary Special All maintained schools sector 
		
		
			 Grade 
			 Head 0.8 0.8 1.0 0.8 
			 Deputy head 1.8 1.2 2.9 1.7 
			 Classroom teacher 1.5 1.5 2.3 1.4 
			  
			  Government office region   
			 North East 0.6 1.0 0.1 0.8 
			 North West 0.4 0.6 0.9 0.5 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 0.3 0.6 0.6 0.5 
			 East Midlands 0.7 0.6 2.2 0.7 
			 West Midlands 0.7 1.1 1.5 0.9 
			 East of England 1.7 1.7 1.8 1.7 
			 London 3.3 3.8 4.6 3.5 
			 South East 1.6 2.1 4.4 2.0 
			 South West 0.6 0.7 1.3 0.6 
			 England 1.2 1.4 2.2 1.4 
		
	
	The number of teacher vacancies in the maintained schools sector in January 2001 was as follows:
	
		
			  Nursery and primary Secondary Special All maintained schools sector 
		
		
			 Grade 
			 Head 150 30 10 190 
			 Deputy head 270 80 30 380 
			 Classroom teacher 1,690 2,480 240 4,400 
			  
			  Government office region   
			 North East 60 100 (15)— 160 
			 North West 110 150 20 280 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 60 110 10 190 
			 East Midlands 100 100 20 210 
			 West Midlands 140 240 30 400 
			 East of England 310 340 20 670 
			 London 820 880 90 1,790 
			 South East 420 550 90 1,060 
			 South West 90 110 10 210 
			  
			 All vacancies 2,110 2,590 280 4,980 
		
	
	(15) Less than five
	Note:
	Totals may not appear to equal the sum of the component parts because of rounding.
	Classroom teacher vacancies in maintained secondary schools by subject were as follows:
	
		
			  Vacancies as a percentage of teachers in post Number of vacancies 
		
		
			 Mathematics 2.1 410 
			 Information Technology 2.8 120 
			 Sciences 1.6 400 
			 French 1.6 160 
			 German 0.8 30 
			 Other languages 3.2 50 
			 All languages 1.5 250 
			 English 1.8 360 
			 Drama 1.7 60 
			 History 0.5 40 
			 Social Sciences 0.4 20 
			 Geography 0.6 50 
			 Religious education 1.8 100 
			 Design and technology 1.3 210 
			 Commercial/business studies 1.3 40 
			 Art, craft or design 0.7 50 
			 Music 1.8 80 
			 Physical education 0.8 100 
			 Careers 4.3 10 
			 Other main and combined subjects 1.7 200 
			  
			 All subjects 1.4 2,480 
		
	
	Note:
	Totals may not appear to equal the sum of the component parts because of rounding.
	As in previous years, the provisional numbers of vacancies published in SFR16/2001 have changed slightly following further validation checks on the data. The total vacancy figures for the nursery and primary phase remain unchanged at 1.2 per cent. and 2,110 posts. The total vacancy figure for the secondary phase has increased from 2,580 to 2,590; the rate remains unchanged at 1.4 per cent. The total secondary schools classroom teacher vacancy figure has increased from 2,470 to 2,480; the rate remains unchanged at 1.4 per cent. The total vacancy figures for special schools remain unchanged at 2.2 per cent. and 280 posts.

Capital Spending (Schools)

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of grant allocation for capital spending in schools is (a) discretionary and (b) must be spent on items stipulated by the Government.

John Healey: The table shows, for next year, the proportion of capital investment in schools through discretionary funding which is un-hypothecated; discretionary funding which is hypothecated for schools capital investment; and funding which must be spent on specific schools capital projects. The table shows this for both capital grants and for all capital support.
	
		Percentage 
		
			 Percentages related to the financial year 2002–03 Grant Total capital support 
		
		
			 Discretionary: un-hypothecated — 16 
			 Discretionary: hypothecated for schools capital 74 41 
			 Project specific 26 43 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Discretionary un-hypothecated: denotes capital support that is allocated to local authorities for schools, but which they are able to use for other services.
	2. Discretionary hypothecated for schools: denotes funding that is allocated to local authorities or schools to be spent on school capital works in accordance with their highest priorities.
	3. Project Specific: denotes funding that is allocated to local authorities or schools to be spent on specific agreed projects.
	4. Total capital support includes grant and credit approvals including PFI credits.

Capital Spending (Schools)

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list the Government grant allocation for capital spending on schools by LEA in each year since 1997, excluding centrally managed initiatives.

John Healey: Tables showing the capital allocations by local education authority in England from 1997–98 to 2001–02 have been placed in the Libraries. Table A shows this for capital grants, table B shows this for all capital support.

Selection

David Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (a) how many and (b) what percentage of those schools which have chosen for the current year to select up to 10 per cent. of pupils by aptitude, have selected by the means of (i) standardised tests, (ii) reports from primary school, (iii) interview with pupil, (iv) interview with parents and (v) a combination of the above.

Stephen Timms: This information is not collected centrally. School admissions are dealt with at local level by the relevant admission authority for each school. It is the responsibility of admission authorities to set their own admission arrangements, after consultation with other admission authorities in their area, and they are expected to have regard to the guidance in the School Admissions Code of Practice. Where a school has a specialism and gives priority to pupils on the grounds of aptitude for that specialism, it is up to the school's admission authority to decide how to assess pupils' aptitude, though the school must publish its admission arrangements, including details of any aptitude testing.

Scottish Students

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment she has made of the number of students resident in Scotland who attend further education in England and Wales.

John Healey: holding answer 10 December 2001
	The number of students studying in further education sector colleges in England in 1999–2000 was 3.7 million, of which 5,600 were resident in Scotland.
	For information on students attending further education colleges in Wales I refer the hon. Member to the National Assembly for Wales.

Teachers' Work Load

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what recent representations she has received about the work load in pre-school nurseries and playgroups.

Stephen Timms: I am not aware of any recent representations on this issue.

Teachers' Work Load

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what is her latest assessment of the number of hours being worked by teachers each week; and if she will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: The PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) teacher work load study indicates that, during term time, teachers work around 52 hours per week. PwC's final report will in due course be referred to the School Teachers Review Body.

Teachers' Work Load

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will publish the findings of the PricewaterhouseCoopers report into teachers' work load before 24 January 2002.

Stephen Timms: The final report from PricewaterhouseCoopers is available on the DfES website at the following address: www.teachernet.gov.uk/ workloadstudy.

Teachers' Work Load

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the terms of reference were for the PricewaterhouseCoopers report into teachers' work load.

Stephen Timms: The aim of the work load study was to identify the main factors that determine teachers' and head teachers' work load, and to develop a programme of practical action to eliminate excessive work load and promote the most effective use of all resources in schools.

Boxing

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will introduce boxing into schools as a specialist part of the sports curriculum.

Ivan Lewis: The new National Curriculum for Physical Education, which was introduced in September 2000 specifies six areas of activity which schools should provide. Boxing is not one of those activities and there are no plans to introduce it.

Indiscipline (State Schools)

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  if she will make it her policy to publish data on levels of indiscipline in state schools;
	(2)  pursuant to her answer of 6 December on levels of indiscipline, for what periods since 1987 data 2001, Official Report, column 450W on levels of indiscipline in state schools are available on a consistent basis; and if she will publish such data.

Stephen Timms: We do not have consistent data on levels of indiscipline in schools. Methods for gathering information about pupil behaviour changed after Ofsted was set up in 1992, and a further change took place in 1996–97.
	Information gathered by Ofsted inspectors about indiscipline in schools informs statements given in the annual reports of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools. I have therefore asked Mike Tomlinson to write to the hon. Member and to place a copy of his letter in the Library.

Departmental Expenditure Limit

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of the increase in the departmental expenditure limit from 2001–02 to 2002–03 will be accounted for by wage costs.

Estelle Morris: The level of wage costs within departmental budgets this year and in future years will be dependent upon negotiations. Departmental reports published next spring will give details of Departments' expenditure.

WORK AND PENSIONS

CSA

Gerry Steinberg: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to compensate parents with care who have suffered financial loss as a result of the CSA not reflecting the amount they have been denied as a result of non-receipt of child support payments.

Malcolm Wicks: In common with other Government agencies, the CSA can make payments to compensate its clients for financial loss suffered as a result of maladministration. This compensation scheme can cover maintenance payments lost as a result of administrative failures in the agency. Compensation payments cannot, however, be made to cover maintenance withheld by non-resident parents where the CSA has acted correctly in seeking to enforce liability.

Benefit Systems

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will place in the Library a copy of the local government performance indicators for 2000–01 on housing benefit and council tax benefit for each local authority.

Malcolm Wicks: Best Value Performance Indicators for housing benefit and council tax benefit for English local authorities are contained in The Local Government (Best Value) Performance Indicators Order 2000, SI 2000 No. 896. A copy is available in the Library.
	Performance indicators for Scotland and Wales are the responsibility of the Accounts Commission for Scotland and the National Assembly for Wales respectively.

Carers

Tom Levitt: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list the measures the Government have brought in since 1997 to assist people who are carers for others.

Maria Eagle: The Government's general approach to carers is outlined in "Caring About Carers", the report of the National Carers Strategy published in February 1999. A great deal has already been achieved to implement the Strategy and further work is continuing.
	The table shows the measures introduced specifically for carers since 1997:
	
		
			 Date Measure 
		
		
			 February 1999 Introduction of the Carers Grant—to enable local authorities to provide a wider range of services to give carers a break 
			   
			 December 1999 The Employment Relations Act gave carers in paid work the right to have time off to deal with family emergencies 
			   
			 February 2000 Introduction of carers website to give details of services and benefits affecting carers 
			   
			 March 2000 Introduction of the work life balance initiative to promote good practice to help employers explore work life balance 
			   
			 April 2000 The Carers and Disabled Children Act gave local councils the power to give carers a needs assessment in their own right. The Act also allows local authorities to give vouchers for buying-in provision when a carer needs respite 
			   
			 April 2001 The ICA Earnings Limit was increased by £22 to the level of the National Insurance Lower Earnings Limit to help carers who are able to combine work with caring 
			   
			 April 2001 The Carer Premium paid through Income-Related Benefits was increased by £10 per week, to provide additional financial support to carers who are less well off 
			   
			 July 2001 Launch of UK Online Life Episode "Looking after someone" to provide a wide range of information for carers 
		
	
	In autumn 2000, a substantial package of measures to help carers was announced. This amounts to over £500 million of extra support in the first three years covered by the announcement.
	It includes a number of improvements to the main carer benefits aimed in particular at helping older and poorer carers, as well as helping carers to keep in touch with work by making part-time employment more worthwhile financially.
	The package also included measures to remove the barrier that prevents people aged 65 or over from claiming invalid care allowance will be removed; ensure entitlement to ICA will continue for up to eight weeks after the death of the disabled person; and rename ICA as 'Carer's Allowance'.
	These changes will be introduced by Regulatory Reform Order (RRO) at the earliest opportunity.

New Deal

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in the Buckingham constituency are on the new deal programme, broken down by each category of the new deal.

Nick Brown: The available information is in the table.
	
		
			 Programme Number of people on the programme(16) 
		
		
			 New deal for young people 4 
			 New deal 25 plus 20 
			 New deal for lone parents (17)17 
			 New deal 50 plus (employment credit claims) (18)10 
		
	
	(16) End September 2001
	(17) Figure for end of August 2001
	(18) Figure for end of October 2001
	Note:
	The figures are not cumulative
	Source:
	New Deal Evaluation Database
	Information at constituency level is not available for the new deals for disabled people and partners.

New Deal

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Government Departments have signed new deal employer agreements.

Nick Brown: Twenty-seven Government Departments and agencies have signed national new deal employer agreements. A number of other Departments and agencies have signed employer agreements with their local jobcentres.

New Deal

Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people on the new deal for young people in the Loughborough constituency have joined (a) subsidised employment, (b) the Environmental Task Force, (c) the voluntary sector and (d) full-time education or training in each year since its first year of operation.

Nick Brown: The information is in the table.
	
		Number of young people starting NDYP options in Loughborough
		
			 Year Subsidised employment Environment task force Voluntary sector Full-time education and training 
		
		
			 1998 5 3 5 19 
			 1999 9 25 22 50 
			 2000 6 20 19 19 
			 2001(19) 6 8 11 20 
			  
			 Total 26 66 57 108 
		
	
	(19) To end September
	Source:
	New Deal Evaluation Database

Debt Reduction

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the expected reduction in debt in 2001–02 from cases of overpayment.

Malcolm Wicks: The amount of new debt recorded from April to October 2001 was 14 per cent. lower than the same period in 2000–01.

Debt Management System (Cancellation)

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the cost in (a) 2000–01 and (b) 2001–02 from the cancellation of the debt management system.

Malcolm Wicks: The debt accounting and management system (DAMS) procurement contract was discharged in July 1999. The costs of DAMS are commercial in confidence, but the Benefits Agency paid only for what was of value. No costs were incurred after 1999.

Overpaid Benefits (Recovery)

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if the target saving in 2000–01 from the recovery of overpaid benefits was achieved.

Malcolm Wicks: The overpayment recovery target for 2000–01 was exceeded by 1.2 per cent.

Departmental Resources

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the unallocated resource provision referred to on page 96 of the 2001 Departmental report.

Nick Brown: The unallocated resource provision referred to on page 96 of the 2001 Departmental Report contains two separate elements of agreed funding.
	The first relates to the Welfare Modernisation Fund; the level of funding was agreed in the last Spending Review. Use of the funding is subject to joint Treasury and Departmental agreement, before it may be allocated to specific projects.
	The second relates to the Departmental Unallocated Provision, which was established in accordance with treasury guidelines; to be a source of funding held by the Department, initially unallocated for specific use, but to be used as the first port of call to meet unexpected funding pressures, rather than a call being made upon the Reserve.

Child Poverty

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children were living in poverty in (a) April 1997 and (b) April 2001.

Malcolm Wicks: Child poverty and social exclusion are complex multi-dimensional concepts, affecting many aspects of children's lives—including their living standards, health, housing, the quality of the environment, and opportunities to learn. The third "Opportunity for all" report (Cm 5260) sets out the Government's strategy for tackling child poverty and social exclusion and presents the latest information on the indicators used to monitor progress against this strategy.

Housing Benefit

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of (a) council and (b) registered social landlord tenants in each region of England are in receipt of housing benefit; and how many of these are pensioner households in each case.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is in the table.
	
		Percentage 
		
			   Housing benefit Pensioner households  
			   Council tenants Housing association tenants Council tenants Housing association tenants 
		
		
			 England 54 56 46 42 
			  
			 North-east 57 60 39 54 
			 North-west 56 59 41 52 
			 Yorks and Humberside 55 52 54 31 
			 East midlands 51 58 53 25 
			 West midlands 52 49 46 46 
			 East 50 64 56 51 
			 London 54 55 37 33 
			 South-east 51 53 47 43 
			 South-west 57 65 51 46 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Council housing covers housing rented by local authorities and New Town development corporations. Housing association covers housing associations, charitable trusts and local housing companies.
	2. Pensioners are defined as households where the benefit recipient and/or the partner are aged 60 and over.
	3. These estimates are based on sample counts that have been adjusted for non-response using multi-purpose grossing factors for region, Council Tax Band and a number of demographic variables.
	Source:
	Family Resources Survey 1999–2000

Long-term Unemployed

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to his statement of 28 November 2001, Official Report, column 972-75, what plans he has for training to be provided for the long-term unemployed under his proposals.

Nick Brown: The primary aim of the StepUP pilots will be to give people experience of work rather than training. We expect employers offering transitional jobs to help people gain the skills, the support and the experience of work they need, rather than follow a set training programme. This will act as a stepping stone to jobs in the local labour market.

Parliamentary Questions

Tom Levitt: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he will reply to question 12335, from the hon. Member for High Peak, tabled on 31 October, relating to carers.

Maria Eagle: The question was answered today.

Minimum Income Guarantee

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what strategy there is to ensure that all pensioners who are eligible for the minimum income guarantee know they can apply for the extra income.

Ian McCartney: holding answer 3 December 2001
	There are a number of measures already in place to ensure that pensioners know they might be eligible for the Minimum Income Guarantee.
	From 15 October 2001, callers to the Retirement Pension Telecentre who are not already receiving MIG are asked a series of questions to identify if they may be entitled and encouraged to claim if they wish to do so. Those pensioners who claim Retirement Pension by post are sent a MIG leaflet.
	We are looking at a number of options to extend this service so that a claim to MIG will be invited automatically following certain key life events, for example when the pensioner reaches age 75 or 80, or when another benefit, such as Attendance Allowance, is awarded.
	We are also working in partnership with organisations for older people to improve access to benefits and take up of the MIG. This includes projects on a national good practice guide and a survey of local take up initiatives.

BAE Systems

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the employment implications of BAE Systems' decision to close the Regional Jet RJ and RJX programme; and what steps his Department is taking to provide assistance to the employees being made redundant at Woodford.

Nick Brown: Redundancies were announced by BAE Systems on the 27 November at a number of UK locations including Woodford where 993 redundancies will take place.
	Employment Services have arranged a meeting with the management team at BAE on the 5 December to discuss the support available for employees. This is likely to include an on-site Jobshop, with support for employees' jobsearch, along with training and careers advice and guidance. We will be working with local training providers and the North West Development Agency to ensure that support meets local needs.

Remploy

David Clelland: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many employees of Remploy have been dismissed in the past 12 months; and how many of these were trainees.

Maria Eagle: During the 12 months from December 2000 to November 2001, 2,315 people left Remploy's employment, for a variety of reasons.
	The number of trainees leaving the WorkStep programme without employment during this period was 189. Reasons for leaving included poor conduct, resigning for personal reasons, and medical reasons.
	During the same period, Remploy took on 344 trainees into permanent positions in Remploy sites and progressed another 121 trainees into external employment.

Remploy

David Clelland: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many non-disabled workers have been recruited through agencies who are employed by Remploy.

Maria Eagle: Remploy rarely recruits employees through the use of employment agencies relying mostly on the Employment Service to refer candidates for employment.
	Remploy does use agency labour (not employed by Remploy) from time to time to address temporary work load fluctuations, or the need for specialist skills. These individuals are supplied by an agency, often on a week- to-week, short-term, temporary basis, to meet customer demands while avoiding incurring long-term costs and liabilities.
	Currently, Remploy is using around 30 agency employees in this capacity.

Remploy

David Clelland: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what was the total cost of administration in Remploy in (a) 1997–98, (b) 1998–99, (c) 1999–2000 and (d) 2000–01.

Maria Eagle: The total costs of administration in Remploy were:
	
		
			 Year £ million 
		
		
			 1997–98 19.6 
			 1998–99 17.6 
			 1999–2000 17.7 
			 2000–01 18.0 
		
	
	These totals cover all salary and bought-in costs for everything except direct labour, factory overheads, sales and marketing, distribution and financial charges.

Remploy

David Clelland: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the individual annual remuneration was to (a) the Chairman and (b) executive directors of Remploy in (i) 1997–98, (ii) 1998–99, (iii) 1999–2000 and (iv)2000–01.

Maria Eagle: Individual annual remunerations were as follows.
	
		£ 
		
			   1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 
		
		
			 Chairman (D. G. Heywood) 14,000 13,000 10,400 — 
			 Chairman (A. E. Pedder—appointed 1 January 2000) — — 10,800 72,500 
			 Chief Executive (A. G. H. Withey) 110,000 115,000 114,500 47,700 
			 Chief Executive (R. Paffard—appointed 1.11.00) — — — 58,000 
			 Finance Director 78,000 80,000 84,100 87,800 
			 Personnel Director 76,000 78,000 83,000 86,200 
			 Operations Director 76,000 79,000 84,200 97,200 
			 Sales and Marketing Director (appointed 1 November 1998 to 31 December 2000) — 31,000 76,400 — 
		
	
	(20) Mr. Pedder's involvement was increased to provide cover until the new chief executive was appointed, and to develop the new strategies for the company.

Remploy

David Clelland: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what were the average weekly hours worked by Remploy employees in (a) 1997–98, (b) 1998–99, (c) 1999–2000 and (d) 2000–01.

Maria Eagle: Remploy does not record average weekly hours of work for its employees.
	However, in this period the standard contracted hours of work for employees have reduced.
	In 1997–98, standard hours were 37 per week. On 31 May 1999 they were reduced to 36.5 hours per week and on 5 June 2000 they were further reduced to 36 hours per week.

Disability Living Allowance

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to review the (a) design and (b) content of the disability living allowance claim form to make it more accessible to people with mental health problems; and if he will ensure that mental health service users play an active part in this review.

Maria Eagle: We are currently looking at how the disability living allowance claim form can be made more easily accessible for all disabled people: This follows changes earlier this year, when we reduced the claim pack by nine pages without losing essential information. However, we recognise that people with mental health problems can have special difficulty expressing their needs on a claim form, which is why we are considering alternative methods of obtaining the information we need, for example, by using Community Psychiatric Nurses to interview some people with mental health problems.
	We intend to consult organisations of, and for disabled people, including those with mental health problems, as part of these initiatives.

Disability Living Allowance

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what reason the Government last year added regulation 10C of DLA Regulations, pursuant to the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1972 on what constituted attention in section 72(1) for the disability living allowance care component.

Maria Eagle: Regulation 10C was added to the Social Security (Disability Living Allowance) Regulations 1991 with effect from 25 September 2000 in order to make clear that remote "attention" via the telephone, or other electronic means, does not count as attention in connection with bodily functions for the purposes of the care component of disability living allowance. This restores the original policy intention that attention in connection with bodily functions must be carried out in the presence of the severely disabled person.

HIV

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will amend the Liability Discrimination Act 1995 to protect people with HIV from discrimination at the point of diagnosis.

Maria Eagle: We are currently considering what amendments should be made to the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

Nursing Care

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what entitlement self-funding residents in residential or nursing care have to (a) attendance allowance, (b) nursing care contributions from their local health authority in England from 1 October, (c) attendance allowance and (d) nursing and personal care contributions under the scheme for such support proposed by the Scottish Executive.

Maria Eagle: People in residential care or nursing homes in England and Scotland who fund the whole cost of their care from their own resources can receive attendance allowance. From 1 October 2001, such residents in England can have the opportunity to have their need for nursing care assessed by an NHS nurse. This determines the level of payment that the NHS pays to the nursing home in respect of that person's nursing care: low (£35 per week), medium (£70 per week) and high (£110 per week). Such payments are disregarded in determining whether or not a person is a self-funder.
	Proposals for changes to the provision of nursing and personal care in Scotland are a matter for the Scottish Executive. If, however, the result of the proposals for personal care are such that people who were self-funders no longer meet the whole cost of their care from their own resources attendance allowance will no longer be payable.

Social Fund

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Social Fund payments made at the Wallasey or Hoylake offices which are paid off-line will be met from (a) additional departmental funds and (b) existing Social Fund allocation for the Wirral area.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 6 December 2001
	As is the normal practice for all social fund payments, any which are paid off-line are being met from the existing social fund allocation for the Wirral District. However, as a matter of course, the District budget is closely monitored.

Winter Fuel Allowance

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to extend the winter fuel allowance to disabled people.

Ian McCartney: Help is already available, through disability benefits and the disability premium in income support, in recognition of the extra costs, including heating, which disabled people may have. There are no plans to extend the winter fuel payment scheme to disabled people under age 60.

Winter Fuel Allowance

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people will receive winter fuel payments in 2001–02 in Portsmouth, South.

Ian McCartney: Last winter, around 17,600 people aged 60 and over in Portsmouth, South constituency received a winter fuel payment. The figure for this year will be similar.

Benefits (Scotland)

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what discussions he has had with members of the Scottish Executive since 3 May on free care for the elderly in Scotland; and what was the outcome of such discussions.

Ian McCartney: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle upon Tyne, Central (Mr. Cousins) on 19 November 2001, Official Report, columns 154–55W, and the written answer I gave the hon. Member for Perth (Annabelle Ewing) on 21 November 2001, Official Report, column 347W.

Stakeholder Pensions

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent representations he has received from independent financial advisers regarding the implementation of stakeholder pensions.

Ian McCartney: holding answer 10 December 2001
	Ministers have many meetings with pensions industry representatives, including independent financial advisers.

Pension Credit

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what additional IT systems will be required in respect of the new pension credit; and how many additional staff he expects to employ.

Ian McCartney: holding answer 11 December 2001
	Pension credit will be introduced initially on the Department's existing computer systems, in order to de-risk the project. It will transfer as a replacement system, on modernised IT, at a later date, when the new benefit has been successfully implemented.
	The pension service, to be launched in April 2002, will administer pension credit, ensuring that pensioners received a joined up service. The numbers of staff required to deliver this new service are still being finalised.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Golden Jubilee

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to her answer of 31 October 2001, Official Report, column 758W, what precedent exists for awarding the Jubilee Medal to non-service men and women, particularly to those working in the emergency services.

Tessa Jowell: In 1997, the Silver Jubilee Medal was awarded to a wide range of recipients other than the armed forces, including the police, local services (including fire, health, social and education) and the civil service.
	On the question of eligibility for the Queen's Golden Jubilee medal, I would refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave today to the hon. Member for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton (Mr. Gibb).

Golden Jubilee

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to award the Queen's Jubilee Medal to the (a) Fire and (b) Ambulance Service.

Tessa Jowell: As I announced on Tuesday 4 December, the Government have decided that eligibility for the Golden Jubilee medal should be extended to include members of the emergency services: the police, fire and ambulance services, the Coastguard, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, and the Mountain Rescue service. As is the case for the armed forces and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, the medal will be issued to serving members who have completed a minimum of five years' reckonable service on 6 February 2002.
	A copy of the announcement has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

English National Stadium

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what time limits she has set for discussions between Patrick Carter and the Football Association on the English National Stadium;
	(2)  when she expects discussions about football's national stadium between the Football Association and Patrick Carter to be concluded; when she will publish the report of Patrick Carter's investigation into the English National Stadium; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has not set a deadline, but we hope to make an announcement and publish Patrick Carter's report before the Christmas recess.

English National Stadium

John Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how far below the water table the playing surface is of the proposed National Football Stadium in the Birmingham bid.

Richard Caborn: Birmingham city council have confirmed that the proposed level of the playing surface is above the water table.

Ministerial Duties

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list the non-parliamentary events at which (a) she and (b) other Ministers in her Department have made a speech in an official capacity since 8 June; and what was the (i) purpose and (ii) date of the attendance.

Tessa Jowell: holding answer 6 December 2001
	The information requested is in the following table. This excludes speeches made at party or other non- departmental events.
	
		
			 Date Minister Event 
		
		
			 12 June 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Presentation of the Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-Fiction 2001 
			 18 June 2001 Secretary of State Launch of Architecture Week 
			 20 June 2001 Secretary of State Smith Institute seminar 
			 25 June 2001 Secretary of State Launch of South East England Cultural Strategy 
			 26 June 2001 Secretary of State CBI Tourism conference 
			 27 June 2001 Secretary of State 5th Lottery Monitor annual conference 
			 27 June 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Launch of the Film Council's Regional Investment Fund for England 
			 29 June 2001 Secretary of State Announcement of site for Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain 
			 2 July 2001 Secretary of State South West Regional Cultural Strategy launch 
			 2 July 2001 Minister of State for the Arts New Opportunities Fund Digitisation Launch 
			 3 July 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Launch of NESTA awards 
			 4 July 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Dinner for South West Tourism and industry representatives 
			 5 July 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Royal Academy of Dance Academic awards 
			 5 July 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Lunch with North Devon Marketing Bureau and Exmoor tourism representatives 
			 10 July 2001 Secretary of State Radio Festival 
			 11 July 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting British Hospitality Association's annual reception 
			 11 July 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Launch of National Foundation for Youth Music, Early Excellence Centre 
			 12 July 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Regional Cultural Consortium strategy launch 
			 13 July 2001 Minister of State for the Arts North West Development Agency annual conference 
			 13 July 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Launch of North West Regional Cultural Strategy 
			 13 July 2001 Minister of State for Sport Physical Education and Sport conference 
			 17 July 2001 Minister of State for Sport Liverpool Football Academy 
			 17 July 2001 Minister of State for Sport Brookfield High School 
			 20 July 2001 Minister of State for Sport East Midlands Sport Board "Government Plans for Sport" 
			 22 July 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Welsh Tourism industry dinner 
			 23 July 2001 Minister of State for Sport Opening Ceremony of Cerebral Palsy—Internal Sports and Recreation Association World Games 
			 16 July 2001 Secretary of State British Inward Tour Operators Association reception 
			 16 July 2001 Minister of State for the Arts National Heritage Memorial Fund Reception to celebrate the 21st Anniversary of the Fund 
			 26 July 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Opening of British Library's Exhibition: "Lie of the Land" 
			 1 August 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Launch of Playday 2001—Children's Play Council 
			 6 September 2001 Minister of State for Sport Supporters Direct conference 
			 6 September 2001 Minister of State for Sport Institute of Sports and Recreation Management conference 
			 10 September 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Launch of Audiovisual Industries Training Group report 
			 13 September 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Opening of Julian Stair exhibition at Contemporary Applied Arts 
			 19 September 2001 Minister of State for Sport Launch of North East Sports Strategy 
			 20 September 2001 Minister of State for Sport Medilink Live Medical Technology Fair 
			 20 September 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting English Historic Towns Forum conference 
			 22 September 2001 Minister of State for Sport Sport Across Staffordshire 
			 24 September 2001 Minister of State for Sport Sport England conference "Past, Present, Future" 
			 25 September 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Launch of British Hospitality Association's Industry Forum 
			 25 September 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Opening of new Collections Centre, Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester 
			 26 September 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Arts and Business reception 
			 26 September 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Launch of "Whose London" (LWT Community Arts initiative) 
			 4 October 2001 Minister of State for Sport Launch of Non-League Club Directory 
			 4 October 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Opening of the Japan 2001 "Facts of Life" exhibition at the Hayward Gallery 
			 8 October 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Opening of the Paul Robeson exhibition at the Theatre Museum, Covent Garden 
			 8 October 2001 Secretary of State Opening of Robin Howard Dance Theatre 
			 9 October 2001 Secretary of State Launch second round of Artsmark scheme 
			 10 October 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Good Practice in Financing the Creative Industries conference 
			 11 October 2001 Minister of State for Sport Launch of Anti-Racism Charter for Sport 
			 11 October 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Paul Hamlyn Foundation awards for Visual Artists 
			 12 October 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Tourism Management Institute seminar 
			 16 October 2001 Minister of State for Sport Launch of Colchester Utd. Community Sports Trust 
			 16 October 2001 Minister of State for Sport Opening of Ipswich FC's Training Academy 
			 16 October 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Opening of the "Radical Fashion" Exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum 
			 17 October 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Design Conference at Imperial War Museum 
			 17 October 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Opening of "Art on The Line" Exhibition at Courtauld Institute Gallery 
			 17 October 2001 Secretary of State "Taking the Lead: Good Design in Public Buildings" conference 
			 17 October 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Yorkshire Tourist Board's Annual Tourism conference 
			 18 October 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Heart of England Tourist Board's annual general meeting 
			 18 October 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Reception to celebrate the 10th Birthday of Public Monument and Sculpture Association at Courtauld Institute Gallery 
			 19 October 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Cheltenham Literature Festival 
			 22 October 2001 Secretary of State "A Media Odyssey"—Society of Editors conference 
			 22 October 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Launch of Channel Four's "Four Minute Wonders" 
			 23 October 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Launch of the Regional Task Force report "Renaissance in the Regions" 
			 23 October 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Lunch with Association of Leading Visitor Attractions 
			 25 October 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Restaurant Association's annual business conference 
			 26 October 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Historic Environment Forum seminar on the Valetta Convention 
			 27 October 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Opening of Michael Young Centre in Cambridge 
			 29 October 2001 Secretary of State Launch of Centenary Development at Tate Britain 
			 29 October 2001 Secretary of State Museums Association conference 
			 29 October 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Launch of ITC guide "Adjusting the Picture" 
			 31 October 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting New Statesman Media Lecture 
			 1 November 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting "Excellence Through People" awards ceremony 
			 1 November 2001 Minister of State for Sport Sport England Regeneration Policy Advisory Group dinner 
			 6 November 2001 Secretary of State Coalfields Lottery conference 
			 6 November 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Launch of the "Timestars" Teletext pages 
			 6 November 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Local Government Association Launch of "Realising the Potential of Cultural Services" 
			 6 November 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting British Video Association annual general meeting 
			 7 November 2001 Minister of State for Sport British Casino Association annual general meeting 
			 7 November 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Empowering the Learning Community Steering Group meeting 
			 8 November 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Arts and Business Awards 2001 at the National Theatre 
			 8 November 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting Westcountry Excellence Food and Tourist awards 
			 9 November 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Society of Chief Architects of Local Authorities (SCALA) conference 
			 9 November 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Linbury Biennial Prizes for Stage Design at National Theatre 
			 9 November 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Launch of London's Living Library 2001 
			 13 November 2001 Minister of State for Sport Tourism Society annual dinner 
			 13 November 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Launch of the Yorkshire and Humberside Regional Cultural Strategy 
			 15 November 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Hands On! conference at Stratford Circus Arts Centre 
			 19 November 2001 Secretary of State Champions for Change Millennium awards 
			 20 November 2001 Secretary of State Arts and Corporate Social Responsibility seminar 
			 20 November 2001 Minister of State for Sport Opening of the River Tees Watersport Centre 
			 20 November 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting South East Tourist Board awards ceremony 
			 21 November 2001 Secretary of State Launch of English Heritage annual report 
			 21 November 2001 Minister of State for Sport Business in Sport and Leisure annual conference 
			 21 November 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Skillset annual awards 
			 21 November 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Launch of Gateway to the South Bank public art project 
			 22 November 2001 Secretary of State Foreign Press Association lunch 
			 22 November 2001 Secretary of State Celebration of the Age Concern Millennium awards 
			 22 November 2001 Secretary of State "Switzerland Lights Up Tate Modern" 
			 24 November 2001 Secretary of State Annual Congress of Athletics 
			 25 November 2001 Secretary of State Shakespeare Schools Drama Festival Showcase at Duke of York's Theatre 
			 26 November 2001 Secretary of State Institute of Public Policy Research lecture 
			 27 November 2001 Secretary of State Community Media Association annual festival 
			 27 November 2001 Secretary of State British Art Market Federation anniversary dinner 
			 27 November 2001 Minister of State for the Arts Artsmark Awards for London Schools 
			 28 November 2001 Minister of State for Sport Central Council for Physical Recreation annual conference 
			 29 November 2001 Minister of State for Sport Institute of Sports Medicine annual awards 
			 30 November 2001 Minister of State for the Arts National Literacy Trust annual conference 
			 30 November 2001 Minister of State for Sport Arts and Business: New Partners reception 
			 3 December 2001 Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting "Broadband Britain—the Content Challenge" conference 
			 4 December 2001 Secretary of State Launch of Spirit of Friendship Festival 
			 4 December 2001 Minister of State for Sport Sport England national conference on Sport and Regeneration

Departmental Staff (Home Working)

Colin Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps her Department is taking to encourage staff to work from home; and how many staff do so on a regular basis.

Kim Howells: The Department is committed to the work-life balance of its staff and supports a range of flexible working patterns including part-time working, job-sharing and homeworking. Staff are encouraged to make use of the Department's formal home working policy for regular home working. Staff are also facilitated and supported to work from home with their manager's agreement. There are currently seven staff working from home on a regular basis, with resources available to support a further six opportunities. A number of staff throughout the Department also work from home on an occasional basis.
	The Department publicises its policy on flexible working and encourages managers to respond positively to requests as part of its commitment to the diversity agenda.

Youth Services (Ilford)

Linda Perham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what initiatives her Department (a) has implemented and (b) plans to implement that encourage youth participation in sports and cultural activities in the Ilford, North constituency.

Richard Caborn: The Government are committed to the development of sport and increasing opportunities for participation throughout the country, particularly among young people. The strategy for sport—A Sporting Future for All—and the Government's Plan for Sport set out an action plan on how we intend to achieve those objectives. Responsibility for developing sport for young people at the local level rests with a number of organisations including Sport England, local authorities, local education authorities, schools, sports governing bodies, sports clubs and volunteers.
	A number of national programmes which will provide better sports facilities and improve sports provision are being implemented in the London borough of Redbridge including lottery funding where around £4.5 million has been committed to community sports facilities in the borough, the School Sport Co-ordinators programme where a bid is currently being worked up by the local authority and NOF Round three under which £2.1 million has been allocated to the borough. A secondary school in the borough is also showing interest in designation as a specialist sports college.
	The Arts Council has made six lottery awards in Ilford, North totalling £26,309 (details as follows). London Arts Board has made five awards benefiting Ilford, North, totalling £100,352 (details as follows), through the Regional Arts Lottery Programme.
	
		
			  Recipient/project name Award amount (£)  Award date Local authority  Distributing body 
		
		
			  Avigdor Primary School Parents' Association  
			 Avigdor Cultural Club 4,700 6 November 1997 Redbridge Arts Council of England 
			  
			  The New Redbridge Wind Orchestra  
			 Music in the community—The New Redbridge Wind Orchestra 3,750 6 November 1997 Redbridge Arts Council of England 
			  
			  Take Away Productions Ltd.  
			 The Take Away Project 5,000 19 March 1997 Redbridge Arts Council of England 
			  
			  Triple's Show Gang  
			 This group produce an annual amateur drama production. The award will pay for their first production which will raise funds for Haven House hospice 2,859 25 July 2001 Redbridge Arts Council of England 
			  
			  Wanstead and Woodford Cine and Video Club  
			 Video equipment, portable screen and sound equipment 5,000 13 May 1997 Redbridge Arts Council of England 
			  
			 Quadraphonic 
			 'Quadraphonic' CD 5,000 19 March 1997 Redbridge Arts Council of England 
		
	
	Note:
	According to the information supplied by the Arts Council of England
	
		RALP awards benefiting Redbridge
		
			 Organisation Postcode Awarded (£) Artform Borough(s) of 
		
		
			 Arts Initiative Ltd.(21) E1 6LS 30,000 Combined Arts Hackney, Redbridge, Waltham Forest 
			 para active theatre(22) IG3 9SX 12,102 Drama/Theatre/Combined Arts/Dance Barking and Dagenham, Newham, Redbridge (went on to tour other boroughs) 
			 Pascal Theatre Company(23) WC1H 9AR 25,000 Drama/Theatre Barnet, Camden, Harrow, Redbridge 
			 Shruthi Laya Shangam(24) SE26 4ES 17,330 Music/Dance Lambeth, Lewisham, Redbridge 
			 The Lions Part(25) E11 4HB 15,920 Drama/Theatre Camden, Kingston upon Thames, Lambeth, Redbridge, Southwark 
		
	
	(21) Linked: a two mile long multi-media, sound and music site-specific art installation by Graeme Miller w/support from Museum of London, about the history of the M11 Link Road and residents of the 400 houses which once stood there.
	(22) Al-Daakan: towards the costs of a devised performance piece which will tour London venues, integrating Indian classical dance, Filmi dance, physical theatre, mask and puppetry and supported by a series of related educational workshops.
	(23) London-Continental: The development and production of a new play which will be based on interviews with over 60s who lived in the East End as young people, and their grandchildren.
	(24) Unique music and dance fusion: a series of performances of new work by Prasanna Ramaswamy by Western and Indian artists at Royal Festival Hall, developing a fusion of Western and Indian Classical music and dance, and including involvement of London-based students.
	(25) Land Girls/A Sleep of Prisoners Double Bill: a theatre double bill commemorating World War 2 (a play from 1951 and a new devised work) to be performed in London churches including outreach and workshop programmes for older people as part of the research process.

Boxing Centres

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much funding her Department provided to local boxing centres in the last 12 months.

Richard Caborn: In the year up to 30 November 2001, Sport England has made awards under the Lottery Sports Fund of £81,250 to the Finchley and District Amateur Boxing Club and £36,206 to the Riverside Leisure Centre in Bristol for the purchase of boxing rings and equipment. In addition nine awards totalling £30,929 have been made under the Awards for All programme for boxing equipment or to boxing clubs.

Historic Environment

Mike O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when she will publish the Government's statement of policy towards the historic environment.

Tessa Jowell: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions and I will publish our statement "The Historic Environment: A Force for Our Future" tomorrow. Copies will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses and will be available at my Department's website at www.culture.gov.uk.

LORD CHANCELLOR

Electoral Database

Mike Hancock: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what plans he has to make the national registry and voting data electronic; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Whitehead: I have been asked to reply.
	The LASER (Local Authorities Secure Electoral Registers) project has been established by my Department, in conjunction with the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA), the Office of the e-envoy, the Electoral Commission, the Local Government Association and electoral administrators. Its aim is to provide electronic access for authorised users to electoral registers on a national basis. Tenders have been sought for work on the preliminary stages of the project, which will benefit from £12 million Capital Modernisation Funding.

Magistrates Courts

Alan Hurst: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what proposals he has to facilitate geographic access to magistrates courts in the county of Essex.

Michael Wills: I have no proposals in respect of geographic access to magistrates courts in Essex. It is the Government's policy that decisions concerning the number, location and future of magistrates courts in Essex, as with each of the 42 magistrates courts committee areas, are for the local courts committee to determine, in consultation with its local paying authority or authorities.

Magistrates Courts

Alan Hurst: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will make a statement on the future of Witham magistrates court.

Michael Wills: I am not aware of any agreed plans that the Essex magistrates courts committee may have in respect of the Witham magistrates court.

Departmental Staff (Home Working)

Colin Challen: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what steps her Department is taking to encourage staff to work from home; and how many staff do so on a regular basis.

Rosie Winterton: The Lord Chancellor's Department introduced a major new flexible working package in 2001, including the option to work from home on a regular basis.
	Any individual may seek to work from home for personal reasons, and staff are encouraged to make out a business case by using comprehensive guidance, available electronically, to consider feasible options. The department will support staff with the necessary equipment within the home environment where appropriate.
	The Court Service has set up a pilot exercise to explore the merits of home working on a more extensive scale, to establish whether there are significant benefits to the organisation.
	Currently there are fewer than 40 staff who work from home on a regular basis. However, we fully expect that number to increase.

Commission for Judicial Appointments

Joan Humble: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what progress has been made in the establishment of the Commission for Judicial Appointments since the first Commissioner was appointed in March.

Michael Wills: I am pleased to tell the House that Her Majesty yesterday made Orders in Council appointing seven new Deputy Commissioners to assist Sir Colin Campbell, the First Commissioner for Judicial Appointments, in conducting an ongoing audit of the appointments procedures for judges and Queen's Counsel. The remit of the Commission also extends to investigating individual complaints about the way these procedures are applied. The Deputy Commissioners are:
	Urmila Banerjee
	Tony Boorman
	Jane Drabble
	Frances Heidensohn
	Sir Duncan Nichol
	John Simpson
	Jean Tomlin.
	Additional, John Simpson is also appointed as Commissioner for Judicial Appointments in Northern Ireland.

Land Registry

Kali Mountford: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what progress has been made towards the implementation of the recommendations made in the Quinquennial Review of Her Majesty's Land Registry.

Michael Wills: The Government have approved a wide- ranging programme of work in response to the review. Details will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
	HM Land Registry is committed to providing the world's best service for guaranteeing ownership of land, and for facilitating property-related transactions. As a fourth time Charter Mark winner, the Land Registry already delivers excellent service to its customers. Further improvement to its internal operations recommended by the review are being pursued vigorously. By bringing forward this wider work programme, the Land Registry can, with the help of other Government Departments and stakeholders, develop innovative and customer-focused services for an even better service.
	The main elements of the wider programme, much of which depends on the Land Registration Bill introduced in July, are to:
	develop and promote electronic conveyancing services, including the National Land Information Service;
	expand the geographic coverage and content of the land register;
	explore ways in which the land register can contribute to making the property markets more efficient and more transparent;
	consider the business case for providing further advisory services relating to land registration by 2003; and
	launch a new independent adjudication service for land registration disputes in 2003.
	Those elements of the programme which are for the Land Registry to take forward will be delivered through a new 10-year strategic plan which I shall publish in the spring.
	I and ministerial colleagues in other Departments with responsibility for land and property markets will monitor the delivery of the programme closely. We will also review the arrangements for consultation across and between Government and those involved in these markets.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Palestinian Territories

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of the money her Department spends multilaterally in the Palestinian territories goes towards furthering peace and security in the region.

Clare Short: Our multilateral contributions comprise: £25 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNWRA) for Palestinian refugees; 5 per cent. of the World bank's resources; and approximately 19 per cent. of the European Commission's aid budget. All of these efforts are designed to contribute to the peace process by helping to build capacity in the Palestinian Authority and to help meet the basic needs of the local population.

Palestinian Territories

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the work of her Department in the Palestinian territories.

Clare Short: Our overall aim is to help promote peace, stability and economic and social development. The UK's bilateral inputs are designed in the broader context of the overall international effort. We work increasingly through World Bank and European Commission channels. The objectives for the UK programme are to support the middle east peace process through capacity building and institutional development for the Palestinian Authority; and to help meet basic human needs, through delivery of health and education services.
	Poverty in the west bank and Gaza Strip has increased during the current crisis. Estimates suggest that the poverty rate has risen during this period from 21 per cent. to 35 per cent. The Palestinian economy shrank by 8.2 per cent. in 2000, while unemployment has risen sharply from a low of 10 per cent. in September 2000 to current levels of over 28 per cent. We have allocated additional resources to deal with the current emergency. We are targeting areas known to be major causes of poverty including unemployment, and lack of access to basic services and water and sanitation.
	In 2001–02, we have increased our bilateral allocation from £8 million to £14 million. In addition, we have contributed £25 million this calendar year to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNWRA) for education, health, relief and social services to Palestinian refugees in the west bank and Gaza Strip, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon.

Congo

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what financial assistance her Department is providing to revive the Inter-Congolese dialogue aimed at ending the civil war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Clare Short: We have provided £525,000 this year in financial support for the Inter-Congolese Dialogue. This consists of a contribution to the costs of staging the Dialogue and support to the Facilitator's Office. The Dialogue is due to reconvene in South Africa early next year. We will actively consider the possibility of any further assistance as needs become clearer closer to the time.

Congo

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what action her Department is taking, in co-operation with other Departments to promote the peace effort in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Clare Short: HMG continue to press all parties to honour their commitments which they have made under the Lusaka Peace Accord. Progress on Lusaka is the key to making progress towards peace in DRC. We are providing support to the Facilitator's Office of the Inter-Congolese Dialogue and has been quick to offer support to take forward opportunities on Disarmament, Demobilisation, and Reintegration (DDR) activities in DRC. These are both key elements of the Lusaka Accord. We are also supporting gross roots peace-building initiatives in the east of the country and a nationwide radio infrastructure project to assist the Congolese people in keeping up-to-date with developments in the peace process.

Zimbabwe

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the measures taken by her Department to encourage free and fair elections in Zimbabwe.

Clare Short: DFID has provided support for civic education programmes and for the training of independent national electoral monitors through local non-governmental organisations. However, recent Zimbabwe Government proposals to exclude civil society from supporting election processes may restrict this work and further undermine international confidence. The EU and Commonwealth are continuing to urge an early invitation to international election observers to create a climate conducive to free and fair elections.

Departmental Staff (Home Working)

Colin Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department is taking to encourage staff to work from home; and how many staff do so on a regular basis.

Clare Short: We are currently preparing a guide for staff and their managers on the range of flexible working options available in DFID, including working from home. My Department has approved medium and long-term plans to introduce worldwide remote access for all staff that need it. Our records show that over 500 staff worldwide are currently able to dial into our information technology systems from home. We are currently gathering information on how many of these staff work from home regularly.

Child Soldiers

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when the Government will ratify the Optional Protocol on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of Children in Armed Conflict; and if she will make a statement.

Geoff Hoon: I have been asked to reply.
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 6 December 2001, Official Report, columns 458–59W, to my hon. Friend the Member for South Swindon (Ms Drown).

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Post-16 Education (Rural Areas)

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of young people living in rural areas in the United Kingdom went into post-16 education compared to the national average in (a) 1996, (b) 1997, (c) 1998, (d) 1999, (e) 2000 and (f) 2001.

Alun Michael: The DfES, which is responsible for the publication of statistics on participation in education, does not produce figures on the basis of an urban/rural breakdown. Figures for individual local education authorities and local skills councils are available in their statistical bulletin "Participation in Education and Training by Young People Aged 16 and 17 in each Local Area and Region, England, 1994–95 to 1998–99", available on their website.

Castle Cement Plant, Ribblesdale

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many tests have been carried out by the Environment Agency on dioxin emissions at the Ribblesdale plant of Castle Cement in the past 12 months; and if she will publish the findings.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 27 November 2001
	Since November 2000 the Environment Agency has conducted three sets of dioxin tests on the kilns at Castle Cement's Ribblesdale plant. The individual sample results are shown in the table. The dioxin limit in the site's Integrated Pollution Control (IPC) permit is 0.8 ng/m 3 .
	
		
			 Sample point Date sample taken Results ng/m(28) dioxin 
		
		
			 Stack from kilns 5 and 6 14–15 February 2001 2.887 and 1.628 
			 Kiln 7 1–2 May 2001 0.001 and 0.001 
			 Stack from kilns 5 and 6 16–17 August 2001 0.212 and 0.295 
			 Kiln 5a 16 August 2001 0.053 
			 Kiln 5b 16 August 2001 0.216 
			 Kiln 6 17 August 2001 0.200 
		
	
	Full details of these results are available on the agency's public registers, at the local Environment Agency office (Richard Fairclough House, 50 Knutsford Road, Warrington, WA4 1HG) and at the Ribble Valley borough council's offices.
	The agency, in accordance with its enforcement policy, has investigated the breach of the emissions limit that occurred at the stack from kilns 5 and 6 on 14–15 February 2001 and a warning letter has been issued to Castle Cement. Over the period to August 2001, I understand that the company undertook its own exploration of emissions from the stack, including sampling. Following the February breach, the agency commissioned work modelling the likely fate of dioxins in the environment and the human food chain. This concluded that even under the worst conditions, individuals in the community exposed to the levels found during the breach of the limit would be most unlikely to exceed the World Health Organisation guideline intake. However, the agency will not accept any re-occurrence of the elevated levels found in February 2001.

Agricultural Development Scheme

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether funding from round three of the Agricultural Development Scheme will support projects outside areas directly affected by foot and mouth disease.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 28 November 2001
	Yes, projects from all areas of England are eligible provided that they meet the eligibility criteria for the scheme, including the requirement that they are directed at sectors affected directly or indirectly by foot and mouth disease or address structural or other weaknesses highlighted by foot and mouth disease.

Environmental Management Systems

Charlotte Atkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if the standard for environmental management systems 1SO 14001 is one of the measures of environmental management standards recognised by her Department as demonstrating a commitment to responsible environmental performance; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: The Department acknowledges the important role of the international standard for environmental management systems, ISO 14001 at the global level. It provides organisations with a sound mechanism for demonstrating publicly their commitment to pollution prevention, to responsible management of environmental risks and impacts and to continual improvements in performance. Having an independent third party certify that the organisation has implemented the management system in accordance with the requirements of the standard is something that is increasingly valued by various stakeholders.

Carbofuran/Chlorfenvinphos

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with her EU counterparts regarding the revocation of licences for the use of (a) carbofuran and (b) chlorfenvinphos; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 4 December 2001
	Under EU rules the UK is not obliged to inform other member states of any national review programme of pesticide products undertaken to address national issues. However, all member states and the Commission were informed of the UK programme to review organophosphate compounds which included carbofuran and chlorfenvinphos. In addition, all are automatically informed of any new product approvals and revocations. The separate European programme intends to review all active substances used in plant protection products within the community and all member states and the Commission are involved in this decision-making process.
	The approval holders for carbofuran and chlorfenvinphos chose not to submit supporting data for their products under the UK review and therefore these products will not be available in the UK after 31 December 2001. Under the European review programme carbofuran has been supported so far although its continued use will depend upon the assessment of the data submitted. Chlorfenvinphos has not been supported. The impact of the European regime will not be felt until 2003 when all the compounds not supported by companies anticipating extensive data requirements will be withdrawn.
	Member states, can however, carry out their own review exercises and carry them out at different times to the European review. In this case, the UK organophosphate review was introduced to address public concerns about the safety of these compounds and we have acted in a consistent manner to revoke their use where appropriate. However, the impact of the loss of these products is not underestimated and officials will continue to do everything possible to help the trade and user groups.

Animal Health Bill

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations she has received on the compatibility of the Animal Health Bill with the European Convention on Human Rights.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 6 December 2001
	As at 4 December the Department has received four pieces of correspondence from interested organisations and individuals which, among other issues relating to the Animal Health Bill, commented on its compatibility with human rights legislation.

Waterways

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent representations she has received concerning the management of Britain's waterways, with particular reference to those in the north-east.

Michael Meacher: The Department has received a number of representations recently on the review of the Environment Agency's navigation responsibilities, but none related specifically to the management of waterways in the north-east.

Rural Reports

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she will respond to the reports by the Rural Task Force and by Lord Haskins.

Alun Michael: I will be publishing the Government's response to the report of the Rural Task Force tomorrow. The published document will also be a response to the report of Lord Haskins, also published on 18 October, and will also take stock on the progress on delivering the Rural White Paper.

Biosecurity

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what further steps she plans to take to assist farmers to meet appropriate biosecurity measures.

Elliot Morley: Many farmers are operating high biosecurity standards as a result of the foot and mouth disease outbreak and it is in their interest to maintain high standards into the future. I have therefore asked my officials to prepare a Code of Practice that will recommend best biosecurity practice to be available to all those engaged in livestock farming. The code will draw on the advice that has been given by the local Biosecurity Units of the State Veterinary Service during the foot and mouth disease outbreak.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Parliamentary Ombudsman

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 5 December 2001, Official Report, column 330W, on the Parliamentary Ombudsman, on which date each of the seven new statutory statements of complaint was received; and on which dates the responses were made.

Angela Eagle: holding answer 11 December 2001
	The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		
			 PCA case Date received by Home Office Date answered by Home Office 
		
		
			 No. 1 21 May 2001 2 July 2001 
			 No. 2 6 August 2001 31 August 2001 
			 No. 3 5 September 2001 17 October 2001 
			 No. 4 7 September 2001 24 October 2001 
			 No. 5 11 September 2001 22 October 2001 
			 No. 6 18 September 2001 25 October 2001 
			 No. 7 5 November 2001 (26)— 
		
	
	(26) Outstanding

Immigration

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases of applicants seeking an extension of an existing leave to remain there are; how many of these cases have been awaiting decision (a) more than 12 months and (b) six to 12 months; how many such cases have lost entitlement to disability related benefits; and whether a protocol has been agreed with the Department of Social Security to backdate benefits when the claim for extension is decided.

Angela Eagle: Statistics on the number of applicants seeking an extension of an existing leave to remain and the length of time they have been awaiting a decision are not available.
	I understand from my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions that payment of disability living allowance or attendance allowance can continue where a recipient has applied for an extension of leave to remain.

Deportation

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to detain a person whose name has been communicated to him and to deport him.

Angela Eagle: I wrote to the hon. Member on 11 December 2001.

Custody

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of people arrested remained in custody for longer than two hours in the last 12 months.

Beverley Hughes: Available data on arrests for notifiable offences are based on aggregated returns made by the police. The information collected is by sex, age group, ethnicity and offence category. Information is not collected on the time people were held in custody.
	The authority for police power of arrest is set out in sections 24 and 25 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984. Reviews of the detention of each person in police detention in connection with the investigation of an offence shall be carried out periodically in accordance with the provisions of section 40 of the same Act.

Languages (Detainees and Translators)

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prison officers speak (a) Arabic, (b) Hindi, (c) Urdu, (d) Farsi or Dari and (e) Pashto as a first language; how many officers, and at what grades, are trained to speak each language; and how many translators are available for work in detention camps in each region of England and Wales.

Beverley Hughes: Information on the languages spoken by prison officers is not held centrally and could be collected only at disproportionate cost. Translation arrangements in Immigration Detention Centres are provided primarily by external translators and on occasion by Immigration Service staff.

Correspondence

Patrick McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will reply to the letter of 2 November from the hon. Member for West Derbyshire on the state of roads and pathways under the control of the Prison Service relating to the Sudbury Park estate, Ashbourne in Derbyshire.

Beverley Hughes: I wrote to the hon. Member on 12 December 2001.

Forced Marriage

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the practice of forced marriage among British Muslims.

Angela Eagle: The practice of forced marriage is wrong. Forced marriage occurs where a marriage is conducted without the valid consent of both parties, and where duress is a factor. It can affect many communities from a variety of cultural backgrounds and continents, not just Muslims. All major world religions condemn forced marriage.
	On 6 November, the Government announced their action plan to tackle the problem, including measures to support victims, in response to the report of the Working Group on forced Marriage "A Choice by Right" published last year. Copies of this report, the joint Home Office and Foreign and Commonwealth Office action plan and the progress report on the latter are available in the Library and on the Home Office website.

Forced Marriage

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many British Muslims have complained to the Department about being forced into marriage against their will in the last five years.

Angela Eagle: We do not have figures covering the past five years. During the past two years, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has had over 300 inquiries on forced marriage. These include people who have:
	(i) already been forced into a marriage and are back in the United Kingdom and have contacted the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO);
	(ii) people who have made telephone calls to the FCO prior to leaving the United Kingdom, stating they fear they may be forced into a marriage;
	(iii) people who have escaped a forced marriage and have been repatriated back to the UK with the help of the Consulates; and
	(iv) people who are still in the countries where they have been taken to by their families to be forced into a marriage but are unable to escape because they are being held against their will.

Forced Marriage

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures there are to ensure that British Muslims are able to choose their marriage partner freely.

Angela Eagle: Under United Kingdom law, any marriage requires the valid consent of both parties. We are seeking to raise awareness of the legal position in the communities affected by forced marriage, particularly community leaders and potential or actual victims.

Prison Diets

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the diet of prisoners.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 10 December 2001
	Public sector prisons provide three meals a day for prisoners. Catering departments prepare multi-choice menus, which meet the needs of the establishment's population and enable pre-selection to take place. All prisons must comply with all food safety legislation and must have regard to particular dietary and religious needs. The Prison Service Catering Manual, which is published as a Prison Service Order, provides full guidance for catering staff on hygiene and food safety, nutritional requirements, diets for special groups, food quality and quality control, and customer surveys. Its requirements apply to both Prison Service and contractually managed establishments.

Homicides

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many homicides were committed in each year from 1997 to 2001 by criminals who were on early release from prison at the time of the attack.

Beverley Hughes: Records held centrally are not in a form as to permit routine analyses of the re-offending of all those on early release.
	However, figures are available for homicides by persons who had previously been convicted of homicide in England and Wales, and are as follows:
	1997: 2—One offender committed suicide after the second offence.
	1998: 2
	1999: 5—One offender committed suicide and one offender died following the second offence.
	2000: 0
	2001: 0.
	Data for suspects convicted of homicides by previous homicide convictions are published annually in tables 4.10 and 4.11 of Criminal Statistics England and Wales.

Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list his reasons for excluding the police from awards of the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal.

Richard Caborn: I have been asked to reply.
	As I announced on Tuesday 4 December, the Government have decided that eligibility for the Golden Jubilee medal should be extended to include members of the emergency services: the police, fire and ambulance services, the Coastguard, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, and the Mountain Rescue service. As is the case for the armed forces and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, the medal will be issued to serving members who have completed a minimum of five years' reckonable service on 6 February 2002.
	A copy of the announcement has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Internet Proof

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures his Department is taking to (a) identify and (b) remove barriers to the take-up of internet proof of (i) age and (ii) identity authentication services by (A) individuals and (B) business users.

Christopher Leslie: I have been asked to reply.
	The Office of the e-Envoy in the Cabinet Office will shortly publish consultation papers that identify, and propose policies to remove, barriers to the take up of authentication services based on the use of digital signatures.
	Some of the approaches to authentication proposed in these consultation papers could be extended to provide proof of age.
	The Government continue to support tScheme; an industry-led voluntary co-regulatory approval body for Trusted Service Providers (TSP). tScheme or equivalent approval will be required for authentication services used to support electronic transactions with Government.

HEALTH

Chorley and South Ribble Hospital

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will ensure that Chorley and South Ribble accident and emergency department plays a central role in achieving the improvements to services planned by the Government;
	(2)  how many ambulance emergency cases were taken to Chorley accident and emergency ward in each of the last five years; and how many of these were then taken to Royal Preston hospital;
	(3)  what plans he has to extend services at Chorley casualty department;
	(4)  what change in service levels has taken place at the accident and emergency department at Chorley hospital in each of the last five years;
	(5)  if he will support a casualty department at Chorley and South Ribble hospital;
	(6)  what assistance he provides to recruit extra staff to work on the accident and emergency department at Chorley and South Ribble hospital;
	(7)  how many people have been treated at Chorley accident and emergency department in each of the last five years;
	(8)  if he will ensure that emergency and orthopaedic services continue to be dealt with at Chorley and South Ribble hospital;
	(9)  if he will make a statement on the merits of operating a full accident and emergency department at Chorley hospital.

Jacqui Smith: Chorley and South Ribble accident and emergency department plays a central role in the current services and will continue to do so. Figures for the number of accident and emergency cases taken to Chorley and Preston are based on the accident and emergency information system, which was introduced in 1997–98. Comparable earlier data are not available:
	
		
			   1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 
		
		
			 All ambulance patients 4,046 5,840 6,491 7,097 
			 All ambulance patients admitted to Chorley 1,544 2,576 2,812 3,303 
			 All Chorley ambulance patients admitted to Preston 169 239 277 291 
			 Total A&E patients transferred to Preston 760 1,339 1,415 1,472 
		
	
	The unification of the accident and emergency department for Chorley and Preston has brought many enhancements to service levels and an increase in activity, as shown in the tables. The rotation of consultants and their junior colleagues between the two sites has enabled medical staff to gain the relevant experience at both locations to provide comprehensive, quality health care. This has led, specifically at Chorley, to more consultants working on the hospital site and, at the same time, to an increase in the number of middle grade doctors working over the 24-hour period.The accident and emergency service for Central Lancashire, which is provided on both sites, already has an excellent record of recruiting staff for the department. It is, for example, one of the few units in the north-west with a full complement of nursing staff.
	Chorley and South Ribble accident and emergency department was redeveloped and expanded in August 1996. The link with Preston has secured the future of this service, so that the population of Chorley and South Ribble will continue to enjoy access to two accident and emergency departments, at Chorley and Preston. Based on existing guidelines, and through its partnership arrangements, Chorley and South Ribble district general hospital has the capacity to provide 24-hour A&E cover in all clinical situations.
	Total attendances at Chorley accident and emergency in each of the last five years were as follows:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 1996–97 42,600 
			 1997–98 45,620 
			 1998–99 46,670 
			 1999–2000 48,481 
			 2000–01 48,504 
		
	
	The Boards of Chorley and South Ribble NHS Trust and Preston acute hospitals national health service trust made it clear that Chorley will continue to provide 24-hour emergency services. The Chorley and South Ribble primary care trust supports that plan. In addition, Chorley and South Ribble district general hospital will continue to play a major role in the provision of orthopaedic services for Central Lancashire.

Hearing Aids

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) digital and (b) analogue hearing aids have been fitted under the NHS as part of the modernising NHS hearing aid services project.

Jacqui Smith: By the end of November 2001, 18,227 adults had been assessed for digital aids and 16,628 digital hearing aids had been fitted by the 20 national health service trusts involved in the pilot project. Additionally, another 1,146 analogue hearing aids were fitted at those centres.

Hearing Aids

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the answer of 16 November 2001, Official Report, column 948, on digital hearing aids, if the funding decisions for 2002–03 for the sites already providing digital hearing aids will be based on maintaining annual levels of service in the provision of digital hearing aids at each site.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 11 December 2001
	Funding decisions for 2002–03 will be made in time to allow sites to make plans for delivering services for that financial year.

Therapy

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the projects that his Department funds that provide medically approved therapy through leisure and sporting outlets; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: The Department does not fund any projects to provide therapy through leisure and sporting outlets, although there are exercise referral schemes whereby primary care staff can refer patients to leisure centres for advice and assistance in increasing physical activity. However, I understand my hon. Friend is particularly concerned about the provision of hydrotherapy services. Hydrotherapy can be provided by the national health service and patients in the first instance should discuss their condition with their general practitioner or consultant, who can advise and refer appropriately.
	Furthermore, I am informed that there are local hydrotherapy services in the North-East at Middlesbrough General Hospital, Hartlepool University Hospital and University Hospital of North Tees. In addition, there are special schools with hydrotherapy pools, which may be available when not being used by the children. These are:
	High Tunstall Comprehensive School in Hartlepool
	Bishopsgarth Comprehensive School in North Tees
	Whitehouse Farm School in Stocton
	New Ormesby School or Tennyman Junior School in Middlesborough have special units and possibly have pools.

Diabetes

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the reasons for the delay in delivering a Diabetes National Service Framework.

Jacqui Smith: The Diabetes National Service Framework standards will be published shortly and the delivery strategy in summer 2002. Publishing in this way will enable us to engage the national health service, partner agencies and people with diabetes more closely in planning and managing the implementation of the Framework. It will also enable us to take account of the resources that will be available in future to support implementation, and the changing roles and responsibilities of NHS organisations and staff. We are also responding to the current pressures on the NHS, particularly in primary care.

Diabetes

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the level of capacity required before the development of a National Service Framework for Diabetes.

Jacqui Smith: We will be publishing the Diabetes National Service Framework in two stages, with the standards this year to be followed by the delivery strategy in summer 2002. Publishing in this way will enable us to engage the national health service, partner agencies and people with diabetes more closely in planning and managing the implementation of the Framework. It will also enable us to take account of the resources that will be available in future to support implementation, and the changing roles and responsibilities of NHS organisations and staff.

Child Abuse

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children's homes in England and Wales that (a) are open and (b) have closed are now under investigation for possible child abuse; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: Information is not collected centrally on the number of children's homes in England that are under investigation for possible child abuse.
	Although the number of children's homes in Wales that are involved in such investigations is a matter for the National Assembly for Wales, a survey carried out in 1998–99 on behalf of the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) Crime Committee established that 32 forces in England and Wales had been investigating claims of institutional child abuse or were doing so during the period covered by the questionnaire (1 January 1998 to 30 June 1999). Many of the remaining forces stated that they had been engaged in such inquiries at other times.
	A similar survey was carried out by ACPO earlier this year to which 32 forces responded. During the period covered by this survey (1997 to 2000) those 32 forces detailed 96 investigations (some of which may have involved more than one institution).

In-patient Treatment

Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients were waiting (a) more than six months and (b) more than 12 months for in patient treatment in the Newcastle and North Tyneside Health Authority area in (i) March 1997, (ii) September 2001 and (iii) each reporting period in between.

Jacqui Smith: Information relating to in-patient waiting times in the Newcastle and North Tyneside health authority is shown in the table.
	
		Patients waiting for elective admission, Newcastle and North Tyneside HA, March 1997 to September 2001: Ordinary and day case admissions combined
		
			 Quarter Total waiting Over 6 months Over 12 months 
		
		
			 March 1997 8,932 1,949 47 
			 June 1997 9,253 2,157 207 
			 September 1997 8,983 2,305 320 
			 December 1997 9,315 2,364 357 
			 March 1998 9,427 1,993 47 
			 June 1998 9,191 1,851 60 
			 September 1998 8,847 1,890 121 
			 December 1998 9,033 1,790 108 
			 March 1999 8,252 1,565 93 
			 June 1999 8,598 1,561 108 
			 September 1999 8,420 1,639 133 
			 December 1999 8,789 1,765 101 
			 March 2000 7,891 1,407 85 
			 June 2000 8,175 1,639 141 
			 September 2000 7,714 1,722 169 
			 December 2000 7,649 1,664 162 
			 March 2001 7,275 1,363 71 
			 June 2001 7,253 1,384 120 
			 September 2001 6,945 1,422 55 
		
	
	Source:
	Department of Health form QF01

External Auditing

Julia Drown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total cost of external auditing for the NHS has been in each of the years from 1990–91 to 2000–01.

John Hutton: The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		Cost of external auditing for the national health service (England) -- £000
		
			   Cost of external audit Other audit remuneration 
		
		
			 1990–91(27) 81 0 
			 1991–92 16,260 0 
			 1992–93 17,097 0 
			 1993–94 28,834 8,284 
			 1994–95 31,105 11,841 
			 1995–96 30,559 13,937 
			 1996–97 28,656 14,647 
			 1997–98 28,279 16,182 
			 1998–99 29,346 16,018 
			 1999–2000 29,105 16,030 
			 2000–01(28) 35,244 13,176 
		
	
	(27) The limited information shown for 1990–91 covers only the few organisations which included previous year figures in their 1991–92 accounts.
	(28) Data for 2000–01 remain provisional and are subject to continuing audit by the National Audit Office.

Aircraft Noise

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the maximum outside night-time noise event target of 60 dBu in the World Health Organisation Charter on Environment and Transport includes noise from aircraft.

Hazel Blears: The World Health Organisation guidelines on community noise express maximum noise events as dBA Lmax. The outside night-time noise event target is 60dBA Lmax and does include noise from aircraft.

Haemoglobinopathies

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessments he has made of the effectiveness of (a) genetic, (b) pre-conceptual and (c) ante-natal counselling offered by the NHS in relation to (i) sickle cell, (ii) thalassaemia and (iii) other haemoglobinopathies.

Jacqui Smith: The report of the survey of haemoglobinopathy screening policy and practice in England www-phm.umds/haemscreening/publications published in October this year indicates that few national health service trusts outside high haemoglobinopathy prevalence areas currently use specialist counsellors.
	No assessment of the effectiveness of genetic, pre-conceptual and ante-natal counselling in the NHS has been made. However, the NHS Plan makes a commitment to implement effective and appropriate screening programmes for women and children. This commitment includes a new national linked ante-natal and neo-natal screening programme for haemoglobinopathies (sickle cell and thalassaemia) by 2004. The screening programme will look at the issue of counselling as part of its overall remit.

Patient Safety

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the work of the National Patient Safety Agency;
	(2)  which health authorities are participating in the pilot study areas investigating systems to report failures and near misses.

Jacqui Smith: The National Patient Safety Agency was established on 2 July 2001 to improve the safety of national health service patients by promoting a culture of reporting and learning from adverse healthcare events. It will establish and operate a national system for reporting, analysing and learning lessons from adverse events and near misses involving national health service patients. The National Patient Safety Agency will also provide advice and guidance to assist in the promotion of patient safety in the NHS.
	The new reporting system is currently being tested at pilot sites in the following health authorities:
	England
	Birmingham
	Bradford
	Cambridge and Huntington
	Camden and Islington
	Cornwall and Isles of Scilly
	Dudley
	East London and the City
	East Riding
	Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster
	Leicestershire
	Merton, Southwark and Wandsworth
	Newcastle and North Tyneside
	North and East Devon
	Oxfordshire
	Southampton and South West Hampshire
	Tees
	Wakefield
	Wiltshire
	Wales
	Dyfed Powys
	Iechyd Morgannwg.

Aluminium

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research is being carried out into the medical impact of aluminium on the human body (a) via its use as a food packaging material and (b) in terms of its presence in drinking water.

Hazel Blears: The most recently published study by the Food Standards Agency showed that exposures of United Kingdom consumers to aluminium from the typical diet in the UK were well within the provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) established for aluminium in 1989 by the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives, even for those eating above-average amounts of food. Although general exposures from the diet are low, the Food Standards Agency currently has four research projects to test if there is migration of aluminium into food from, respectively, glazed ceramic ware, paper and board, kitchen ware and glass.
	Aluminium in drinking-water is a minor contributor to oral intakes of aluminium in UK consumers.
	A wide range of types of research contributes to scientific understanding of the effects of aluminium in humans. There is no comprehensive national or international database of current research on aluminium. The most relevant studies listed in the National Research Register concern the role of aluminium in dementia, clinico-pathological correlates of dementia in Down's syndrome (including aluminium absorption), possible protective effects of selenium and magnesium on the toxicity of aluminium, and a clinical trial of immunotherapy with aluminium hydroxide. The National Research Register is a database of on-going and recently completed research projects funded by, or of interest to, the United Kingdom's national health service, and is available at http://www.doh.gov.uk/research/nrr.htm.
	In addition, the Department and the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly health authority are funding continuing studies of health outcomes in relation to the Lowermoor water pollution incident of 1988, in which the principal pollutant was aluminium sulphate at very high concentrations.

Macular Degeneration

Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which NHS trusts provide treatment and which health authorities have purchased treatment for individual patients (a) inside and (b) outside their own area, for macular degeneration.

Jacqui Smith: In 2000–01, there were 3,317 in-patient episodes in England with a primary diagnosis concerning age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The hospital trusts that provided the treatment are given in list 1, the health authorities that purchased treatment from within their own area in list 2, and those that purchased treatment from outside their area in list 3. An appraisal of the use of photodynamic therapy in the treatment of AMD, which is being conducted by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE), should be completed in July 2002 provided there are no appeals. NICE's guidance will provide for a consistent approach to the purchasing of the treatment.
	
		List 1—Finished consultant episodes (FCEs) for primary diagnosis "Degeneration of macula and posterior pole" (ICD10 code H35.3), by hospital trust, NHS trusts in England, 2000–01
		
			Number 
		
		
			 RP6 Moorfields Eye hospital 329 
			 RL4 Royal Wolverhampton hospital 293 
			 RQ6 Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen hospitals 153 
			 RR8 Leeds Teaching hospitals 130 
			 RBU Central Manchester healthcare 120 
			 REU Burnley healthcare 115 
			 RLZ Royal Shrewsbury hospitals 106 
			 RTX Morecambe Bay hospitals 92 
			 RLW City hospital 90 
			 RJY Wigan and Leigh health 84 
			 RHM Southampton University hospitals 79 
			 RGU Brighton healthcare 74 
			 REF Royal Cornwall hospitals and west Cornwall 72 
			 RKC Warrington hospital 70 
			 RLN City hospitals Sunderland 64 
			 RJ5 St. Mary's hospital 63 
			 REZ Rochdale healthcare 52 
			 RDZ Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch 50 
			 RVY Southport and Ormskirk hospital 48 
			 RA5 East Gloucestershire NHS trust 47 
			 RFK Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham University 45 
			 RA7 United Bristol healthcare 44 
			 RE7 West Cumbria healthcare 44 
			 RM1 Norfolk and Norwich healthcare 44 
			 RMR Blackpool Victoria 44 
			 RCB York health services 42 
			 RTH Oxford Radcliffe hospital 41 
			 RMF Preston Acute hospitals 34 
			 RJE North Staffordshire hospital centre 33 
			 RCX Kings Lynn and Wisbech hospitals 32 
			 RTG Southern Derbyshire Acute hospitals 31 
			 RDF Forest healthcare 30 
			 RPL Worthing and Southlands hospitals 30 
			 RWE University hospitals of Leicester 30 
			 RGT Addenbrookes 29 
			 RMB Blackburn, Hyndburn and Ribble Valley 27 
			 RNT Stoke Mandeville hospital 27 
			 RCC Scarborough and north-east Yorkshire 26 
			 REM Aintree hospitals 26 
			 RBN St. Helens and Knowsley hospital 25 
			 RTD Newcastle upon Tyne hospitals 25 
			 RTK Ashford and St. Peters 25 
			 RGQ Ipswich hospital 23 
			 RD1 Royal United hospitals Bath 22 
			 RA9 South Devon healthcare 21 
			 RJ1 Guy's and St. Thomas' hospital 21 
			 RCV Central Sheffield University hospitals 19 
			 RCJ South Tees Acute hospitals 18 
			 RWA Hull and east Yorkshire hospitals 18 
			 RWP Worcestershire Acute hospitals 18 
			 RJZ King's healthcare 16 
			 RAE Bradford Hospitals NHS trust 15 
			 RMC Bolton hospitals 15 
			 RJ7 St. George's healthcare 14 
			 RTA South Durham healthcare 14 
			 RWJ Stockport 13 
			 RDE Essex Rivers healthcare 11 
			 RN3 Swindon and Marlborough 11 
			 RWF Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells 11 
			 RAJ Southend hospital 10 
			 RBA Taunton and Somerset NHS trust 10 
			 RH8 Royal Devon and Exeter 10 
			 RKB Walsgrave hospitals 10 
			 RDU Frimley Park hospital 9 
			 RTP Surrey and Sussex healthcare 9 
			 RAG Doncaster Royal Infirmary and Montagu hospital 7 
			 RBL Wirral hospital 7 
			 REX Oldham 7 
			 RGB Huddersfield healthcare services 7 
			 RGN Peterborough hospitals 7 
			 RK9 Plymouth hospitals 6 
			  Other trusts (inc. unknown and foreign) 73 
			   3,317 
		
	
	Of the 3,317 cases with this diagnosis, 1,907 (57 per cent.) were treated within the health authority of residence.
	List 2—the following HAs have purchased treatment from trusts within their own area; the majority of these have also purchased treatment from outside their area:
	QEM: Wolverhampton
	QEF: Shropshire
	QC4: Morecambe Bay
	QDH: Leeds
	QDA: Wigan and Bolton
	QDV: Cornwall and Isles of Scilly
	QCY: North-west Lancashire
	QET: Norfolk
	QAM: East Sussex, Brighton and Hove
	QDR: North Yorkshire
	QCV: North Cheshire
	QC7: Sefton
	QDW: Dorset
	QDK: North Cumbria
	QCT: Bury and Rochdale
	QDY: Gloucestershire
	QD8: Avon
	QAN: West Sussex
	QEH: North Staffordshire
	QCJ: Southern Derbyshire
	QD9: Birmingham
	QCL: Leicestershire
	QC2: Liverpool
	QCX: East Lancashire
	QD3: Southampton and south-west Hampshire
	QD6: South and west Devon
	QC5: St. Helens and Knowsley
	QA3: Kensington and Chelsea and Westminster
	QCF: Suffolk
	QCE: Oxfordshire
	QA8: Buckinghamshire
	QAH: Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham
	QER: Cambridge
	QEN: Worcestershire
	QDF: East Riding
	QDP: Tees
	QCP: Nottingham
	QC3: Manchester
	QDN: Sunderland
	QAL: West Surrey
	QDD: Bradford
	QAT: Camden and Islington
	QAX: North Essex
	QD5: Somerset
	QDJ: Newcastle and north Tyneside
	QDE: County Durham
	QC8: Stockport
	QA5: Redbridge and Waltham Forest
	QDX: North and east Devon
	QD7: Wiltshire
	QAY: South Essex
	QAF: West Kent
	QDT: Calderdale and Kirklees
	QDC: Wirral
	QC9: West Pennine
	QCR: Sheffield
	QC1: South Lancashire
	QAJ: Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth
	QCC: Northamptonshire
	QD1: North and mid Hampshire List 3—the following HAs have purchased treatment from outside their area:
	QAQ: Barnet
	QAP: Barking and Havering
	QAR: Brent and Harrow
	QEC: Dudley
	QCM: Lincolnshire
	QCN: North Nottinghamshire
	QEP: East and north Hertfordshire
	QCW: South Cheshire
	QEE: Sandwell
	QA4: Enfield and Haringey
	QA7: Berkshire
	QAK: East Surrey
	QAW: East London and the City
	QAG: Kingston and Richmond
	QEQ: West Hertfordshire
	QA2: Hillingdon
	QDG: Gateshead and south Tyneside
	QA6: Bedfordshire
	QAD: Croydon
	QEK: Walsall
	QEJ: South Staffordshire
	QAV: Ealing, Hammersmith and Hounslow
	QC6: Salford and Trafford
	QD2: Portsmouth and south-east Hampshire
	QDQ: Wakefield
	QAA: Bexley and Greenwich
	QEL: Warwickshire
	QEG: Solihull
	QCH: North Derbyshire
	QDL: South Humber
	QAE: East Kent
	QED: Herefordshire
	QCQ: Rotherham
	QCK: Doncaster.

University of Leicester Hospitals Trust

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many accidents were reported by patients while they were on the premises of hospitals in the University of Leicester Hospitals Trust in the last 12 months.

Jacqui Smith: The number of statutory reportable "incidents" is collected under Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) 1995. This covers reportable infectious diseases, and accidents that result in more than three days absence from work, deaths in the workplace for example.
	The number of RIDDOR incidents recorded at University Hospitals of Leicester National Health Service Trust (UHL) in 2000–01 was 89—the latest year for which figures are available. This figure includes both patient and staff incidents.
	In terms of public liability claims against UHL, under the NHS Litigation Authority's "Non-Clinical Pooling Scheme", the total number of accidents reported by patients and visitors over the last 12 months was 20.

Delayed Discharges

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average delay for patients with delayed discharges has been in each quarter since 1996.

Jacqui Smith: No information was collected centrally about the length of delay for patients with delayed discharge until the first quarter of 2001–02. In the first two quarters of 2001–02, the breakdown of lengths of delay is shown in the table.
	
		Percentage 
		
			 Delay  
		
		
			 Less than eight days 26 
			 Between eight and 14 days 18 
			 Between 14 and 28 days 20 
			 More than 28 days 36

Renal National Service Framework

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measurements of capacity he used when deciding on the feasibility of introducing a Renal National Service Framework.

Jacqui Smith: The Renal National Service Framework was announced on 27 February 2001. An external reference group led by Professor Robert Wilkinson and announced on 14 September 2001, will develop proposals for modernising services and improving patient care over a 10 year period in planned stages. The programme will build on the already agreed and funded targets for expanding kidney dialysis set out in the NHS Plan, and increased transplantation rates agreed with, and funded through, United Kingdom Transplant.

Transsexual People

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 28 November 2001, Official Report, column 978W, on transsexual people, 
	(1)  if he will make it his policy to issue guidance on the protocols of care for transsexual people, irrespective of the issue of funding for gender reassignment surgery for particular individuals;
	(2)  if he will make it his policy to issue guidance on the provision of health care for transsexual people, including care for conditions other than that of transsexualism.

Jacqui Smith: The provision of services for transsexuals has to be very comprehensive as most will require specialist counselling and psychotherapy before surgery takes place, and appropriate care afterwards. The Department does not produce care protocols for treatments, as these are clinical issues and are best left to the professional bodies. The Royal College of Psychiatry has already produced guidelines on child and adolescent gender identity services, and is planning to produce clinical guidelines for adults in 2002.
	Decisions on the types of services that should be delivered to meet the needs of a population have to be taken on the front line by the local heath commissioners. It is their responsibility to be aware of the needs of the population and in deciding what services to provide they should take account of resources. However, there should be no blanket ban on the provision of any service and each case should be considered on its merits. Whatever care is being given, all patients are entitled to be treated with dignity and respect for their individual needs.

Surplus Hospital Sites

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health where the money raised from the sale of surplus hospital sites has been spent; and what plans he has for the use of future proceeds.

John Hutton: Receipts from the sale of surplus hospital sites are distributed equitably across the national health service to be reinvested in land, buildings and equipment. Future proceeds from sales of surplus estate will be distributed this way, and used for new investment.

Vocational Rehabilitation

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has discussed with the Department of Work and Pensions to develop a National Service Framework for vocational rehabilitation.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 6 December 2001
	The Department is already working with the Department of Work and Pensions on pilot schemes to use health and employment services to get people back to work, or remain in work, following illness or injury. We shall be exploring ways in which NHS Plus can contribute to this as well.

Wheelchairs

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many accidents have been caused by (a) powered wheelchairs and (b) electric two seater scooters in each of the last two years.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 10 December 2001
	The Medical Devices Agency received a total of 7,222 adverse incident reports concerning medical devices between 1 December 1999 and 30 November 2000. Completed investigations so far from these reports show that 424 related to electric-powered wheelchairs. The causes of 317 of these completed investigations had some link to the wheelchair itself or its accessories or its instructions for use.
	The MDA received a total of 7,886 adverse incident reports concerning medical devices between 1 December 2000 and 30 November 2001. Completed investigations so far from these reports show that 322 related to electric-powered wheelchairs. The causes of 208 of these completed investigations had some link to the wheelchair itself or its accessories or its instructions for use.
	The MDA has no recorded incidents concerning electric two-seater scooters.

Neonatal Staffing Study

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place a copy of the 1999 UK Neonatal Staffing Study in the Library.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 10 December 2001
	Yes.

Fish and Chip Shops

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reason fish and chip shops may be classified under health and safety regulations as dangerous premises for the employment of young people under 16.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 11 December 2001
	The Children and Young Persons Act 1933, as amended, allows local authorities to introduce byelaws with respect to the employment of children. Such byelaws may prohibit the employment of children in any specified occupation. Local authority byelaws do prohibit children below the minimum school leaving age from working in commercial kitchens and may deem fish and chip shops to come into this category. It would be for individual local authorities to provide a definition of a commercial kitchen in relation to their own byelaws.

Social Exclusion

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will list the competitive grant schemes, administered by his Department and its agencies, open in each year since 1997 to organisations in the voluntary and community sector for the purposes of tackling social exclusion in this country; and, for each scheme in each year (a) the number of applicants, (b) the number of successful applicants, (c) the total of grants awarded, (d) the number of pages in the application form and (e) if the grant can be used to fund the core costs of the applicant organisation;
	(2)  if he will publish a list of the grants made under the competitive grants schemes, administered by his Department and its agencies open in each year since 1997 to organisations in the voluntary and community sector for the purposes of tackling social exclusion;
	(3)  how many competitive grant schemes, administered by his Department and its agencies were open in each of the last 10 years to organisations in the voluntary and community sector for the purposes of tackling social exclusion;
	(4)  what estimate has been made of the administrative cost to (a) the state, (b) unsuccessful applicants and (c) successful applicants of the competitive grant schemes, provided by his Department and its agencies open in each year since 1997 to organisations in the voluntary and community sector for the purposes of tackling social exclusion;
	(5)  if he will place in the Library, a copy of the application form for each of the competitive grant schemes, administered by his Department and its agencies open in each year since 1997 to organisations in the voluntary and community sector for the purposes of tackling social exclusion.

Jacqui Smith: The Department does not run any competitive grant schemes aimed specifically at tackling social exclusion. However, most of what the Department does has great potential to tackle social exclusion by improving health and wellbeing. The Department, through the section 64 general scheme, makes grants to voluntary organisations working in health and social care to tackle health issues which in, for example, reducing health inequalities and reaching disadvantaged groups, assist in tackling social exclusion.
	The section 64 general scheme is primarily aimed at national voluntary organisations although local projects of national significance can be funded. The degree to which individual section 64 grants tackle social exclusion would be impossible to calculate. Project, core and capital funding is available. Information is not available on the administrative costs of the scheme. A copy of the latest section 64 application form has been placed in the Library. Information on the number of applications received, approved and their total value for 1996–97 to 2000–01 was in the reply given by the Minister of State, my right hon. Friend the Member for Barrow and Furness (Mr. Hutton) to the hon. Member for Colchester (Bob Russell) on 25 July 2000, Official Report, columns 501–02W. Information on individual grants in payment is routinely displayed on the Department's website at www.doh.gov.uk/sect64/grants. Information on grants in payment for 2000–01 is currently being amended and will shortly be displayed on the website.
	The Department also funds the Opportunities for Volunteering Scheme. Under this scheme we make funds available to 17 national agents (voluntary organisations) to enable them to support local projects involving volunteers in health and social care related activities. A number of these national agents deal with vulnerable groups and a particular focus of the scheme is to provide opportunities for unemployed people to undertake voluntary work.
	The 17 national agents deal with applications direct from local projects. Administration costs for applicants are not known but the national agents receive approximately £530,000 per annum to cover administration and project support costs.
	In 2000–01 some 487 projects were funded. A copy of the scheme's general notes of guidance 2000–03, which sets out the basic principles of the scheme and the types of applications considered by the 17 national agents, and the Annual Review 2000–01, which provides details of the funded projects, have been placed in the Library.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Government Cars

Tom Watson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many, and what make and model of cars have been purchased by each Government Department since 1997.

Christopher Leslie: There is no centrally held record of all cars that have been purchased by all Government Departments since 1997. The Government Car Service has purchased the following cars since 1997, including cars purchased on behalf of the Cabinet Office:
	
		
			 Make and model Number purchased 
		
		
			 Ford Mondeo 76 
			 Ford Galaxy 3 
			 Vauxhall Omega 59 
			 Vauxhall Vectra 78 
			 Vauxhall Astra 15 
			 Rover 400 7 
			 Rover 45 9 
			 Rover 800 9 
			 Rover 75 5 
			 Land Rover Discovery 1 
			 Jaguar/Daimler 10 
			 Nissan Primera 9 
			 Peugeot 607 1 
			 Toyota Prius 1

Government Cars

Tom Watson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what guidance is given to Government Departments on the purchase of car fleets.

Christopher Leslie: There is no specific central guidance issued on the purchase of car fleets. However, Government Departments have to be satisfied that they are achieving value for money and that they comply with European Union regulations on public procurement.
	The purchase or hire of cars and other vehicles is subject to the Suppliers Directive (93/36/EC as last amended by Directive 97/52/EC). Together with the relevant Remedies Directive (89/665/EEC) the Suppliers Directive has been given effect in the UK by the Public Supply Contract Regulations (SI.1995/201, last amended by SI.2000/2009). Compliance with these Regulations will also fulfil the purchaser's obligations towards suppliers from third countries pursuant to the EEA Treaty, various Europe Agreements and the WTO Government Procurement Agreement. The current threshold is £93,896 and there are rules that require recurrent purchasers to be considered in aggregate over a governed period for the purpose of applying the threshold. Government Departments and other public bodies are responsible for complying with the regulations. The commission will follow up complaints of non-compliance with the member state concerned and may initiate proceedings under Article 226/EC. In the UK interested suppliers harmed or at risk of harm from the breach of the rules can seek interim or final remedies in the High Court (Court of Session in Scotland) which may lead to an interim or final injunction or the award of damages.

Departmental Promotions

Vincent Cable: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much his Department spent on information literature, advertising and campaign material in the financial years (a) 1995–96, (b) 1996–97, (c) 1997–98, (d) 1998–99 (e) 1999–2000 and (f) 2000–01; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: Expenditure on information literature, advertising and campaign material—which includes the cost of employment recruitment—over those years is as follows: (a) £1,347,820; (b) £2,172,064; (c) £1,511,039; (d) £2,565,074; (e) £4,032,479; (f) £3,449,218.

New Deal

John Bercow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many people are employed by the Department under the new deal for young people; and at what cost to public funds.

Christopher Leslie: There are at present three new deal placements between the ages of 18 and 24 within the Cabinet Office costing an average of £17,833 (which is made up of basic salary, Employers National Insurance and Pensions Contributions). Taking into account available subsidies this figures reduces to £15,523 per placement.
	The Cabinet Office has subsequently employed three new deal placements over the age of 24 on a permanent contract through open and fair competition.

Performance Targets

John Bercow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  if the Department broke even on an accruals basis in 2000–01;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on the performance of his Department in meeting its (a) break-even and (b) other public service agreement targets this year.

Christopher Leslie: The Cabinet Office does not have a specific break-even performance target, as it does not on the whole charge for its services apart from the administration and management of civil service pensions and for some of the activities delivered by Centre for Management and Policy Studies.
	However the Government Car and Despatch Agency (GCDA), which is an executive agency of the Cabinet Office, and the Central Office of Information (COI), which is an executive agency and separate Government Department reporting to the Deputy Prime Minister, both have a key performance target to break-even on an accruals basis.
	The GCDA met its break-even target for the financial year 2000–01. This was reported in the Agency's Annual Report and Accounts for the financial year 2000–01, which were laid before Parliament on 17 July 2001. At this stage, it is on course to meet its target in 2001–02.
	Central Office of Information (COI) met its break-even target for the financial year 2000–01. This was reported in the Agency's Annual Report and Accounts for the financial year 2000–01, which were laid before Parliament on 20 July 2001. It is on course to meet its target for 2001–02.
	The Department is on course to deliver its agreed public service agreement targets, as detailed in the Cabinet Office's Departmental Report 2001, copies of which are in the Libraries of the House.